Search results for "chemical engineering"
showing 10 items of 5892 documents
Occurrence of Microplastics in Waste Sludge of Wastewater Treatment Plants: Comparison between Membrane Bioreactor (MBR) and Conventional Activated S…
2022
In this study, the presence of microplastics in the sludge of three wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) was examined. The investigated WWTPs operated based on a conventional activated sludge (CAS) process, with (W1) or without (W2) primary clarification, and a membrane bioreactor process (MBR) (W3). The microplastics (MPs) concentration in the samples of W3 was approximately 81.1 ± 4.2 × 103 particles/kg dry sludge, whereas MPs concentrations in W1 and W2 were 46.0 ± 14.8 × 103 particles/kg dry sludge and 36.0 ± 5.2 × 103 particles/kg dry sludge, respectively. Moreover, MPs mainly consisted of fragments (66–68%) in the CAS plants, whereas the fra…
Merit, Competition, Distinction
2018
The article presents a critique of competition by introducing a concept called 'distinction'. Competition is thought to work as a guarantee of the fairness of meritocratic procedures (merit-based recruiting in the job market or e.g. entrance examinations). However, fairness created by competition is, even at its best, only relative. This critique is then used a part of a larger critique of the role of merit in society.
Hybrid nanocomposites with ultra-low filling content by nano-coating fragmentation
2021
In the current study, a new technique for the manufacturing of polymer nanocomposites (PNCs) with ultra-low filling content (<0.05 wt%) is presented. Specifically, this method has been validated through the production of polypropylene (PP) nanocomposites with Ag nanoparticles. The presented method first consisted in a metal nano-film deposition on PP pellet substrates by a physical vapor deposition (PVD) sputtering equipment. Subsequently, a percentage of the coated pellet was mixed to uncoated ones via an injection molding machine to produce the PNC in a single step. Different mixing percentages of coated PP pellet to the uncoated ones were studied. As a result, the fragmentation of the…
Decomposition Process of Carboxylate MOF HKUST-1 Unveiled at the Atomic Scale Level
2016
HKUST-1 is a metal-organic framework (MOF) which plays a significant role both in applicative and basic fields of research, thanks to its outstanding properties of adsorption and catalysis but also because it is a reference material for the study of many general properties of MOFs. Its metallic group comprises a pair of Cu2+ ions chelated by four carboxylate bridges, forming a structure known as paddle-wheel unit, which is the heart of the material. However, previous studies have well established that the paddle-wheel is incline to hydrolysis. In fact, the prolonged exposure of the material to moisture promotes the hydrolysis of Cu-O bonds in the paddle-wheels, so breaking the crystalline n…
Scanning Tunneling Spectroscope Use in Electrocatalysis Testing
2010
Published version of an article from the journal: Materials (1996-1944). Also available from publisher: http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/ma3063675 The relationship between the electrocatalytic properties of an electrode and its ability to transfer electrons between the electrode and a metallic tip in a scanning tunneling microscope (STM) is investigated. The alkaline oxygen evolution reaction (OER) was used as a test reaction with four different metallic glasses, Ni78Si8B14, Ni70Mo20Si5B5, Ni58Co20Si10B12, and Ni25Co50Si15B10, as electrodes. The electrocatalytic properties of the electrodes were determined. The electrode surfaces were then investigated with an STM. A clear relationship between the…
Micelles in Mixtures of Sodium Dodecyl Sulfate and a Bolaform Surfactant
2006
Mixtures composed of water, sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS), and a bolaform surfactant with two aza-crown ethers as polar headgroups (termed Bola C-16) were investigated by modulating the mole ratios between the components. The two surfactants have ionic and nonionic, but ionizable, headgroups, respectively. The ionization is due to the complexation of alkali ions by the aza-crown ether unit(s). Structural, thermodynamic, and transport properties of the above mixtures were investigated. Results from surface tension, translational self-diffusion, and small angle neutron scattering ( SANS) are reported and discussed. Interactions between the two surfactants to form mixed micelles result in a com…
Polymorphism and Metallic Behavior in BEDT-TTF Radical Salts with Polycyano Anions
2012
Up to five different crystalline radical salts have been prepared with the organic donor BEDT-TTF and three different polynitrile anions. With the polynitrile dianion tcpd2− (=C[C(CN)2]32−), two closely related radical salts: α'-(ET)4tcpd·THF (1) (THF = tetrahydrofurane) and α'-(ET)4tcpd·H2O (2) have been prepared, depending on the solvent used in the synthesis. With the mono-anion tcnoetOH− (=[(NC)2CC(OCH2CH2OH)C(CN)2]−) two polymorphs with similar physical properties but different crystal packings have been synthesized: θ-(ET)2(tcnoetOH) (3) and β''-(ET)2(tcnoetOH) (4). Finally, with the mono-anion tcnoprOH− (=[(NC)2CC(OCH2CH2CH2OH)C(CN)2]−) we have prepared a metallic…
Planthology: an Application System for Plant Diseases Management
2017
The goals of modern agriculture are obtaining high yields that meet the increasing nutritional requirements of the World population. This is extremely difficult for three kind of reasons: i) the lands dedicated to agricultural use are strongly reduced in industrialized Countries; ii) farmers prefer an homogeneous product, because it is easier to manage, with consequent reduction of biodiversity, iii) globalization and climate change have led to the introduction of new pathogens and pest in environments other than original ones, resulting in serious production losses. The consequences of these problems, followed by not timely intervention leads to conditions that make not possible to obtain …
Amorphous Polyphosphate and Ca‐Carbonate Nanoparticles Improve the Self‐Healing Properties of both Technical and Medical Cements
2020
Cement is used both as a construction material and for medical applications. Previously, it has been shown that the physiological polymer inorganic polyphosphate (polyP) is morphogenetically active in regeneration of skin, bone, and cartilage. The present study investigates the question if this polymer is also a suitable additive to improve the self-healing capacity not only of construction cement but also of inorganic bone void fillers. For the application in the cement, two different polyP-based amorphous nanoparticles (NP) are prepared, amorphous Ca-polyP NP and amorphous Ca-carbonate (ACC) NP. The particles are integrated into poly(methyl methacrylate) in a concentration ratio of 1:10. …
An approach to a biomimetic bone scaffold: increased expression of BMP-2 and of osteoprotegerin in SaOS-2 cells grown onto silica-biologized 3D print…
2012
Three-dimensional printed (3D printed) bone material is needed to close the shortage and to avoid the potential health risks associated with autografts and allografts, in the treatment of bone fractures/nonunions or bone trauma. Here we describe the fabrication of 3D printed scaffold, initially prepared form Ca-sulfate that has been impregnated/biologized with Ca-phosphate or with silica. The 3D printed grids had a size mesh of 200 μm; the chemical composition was determined by energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy or conventional chemical analysis. Using human SaOS-2 cells (human osteogenic cells) it is shown that both the Ca-sulfate, and the Ca-phosphate or the silica impregnated Ca-sulfat…