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•Present status on generation of different forms of bioenergy.•Bioenergy policy initiatives undertaken by various federal agencies of countries.•Feedstock utilization, blending ...targets, and policy assistance schemes assessed.•Current bioenergy market scenario analysis.
Over the last few decades, the globe has much relied on fossil fuels; however, environmental concerns forced the World to look at biofuel as an alternative for stable economic development. Biofuel also facilitates national energy security maintenance and reduces environmental complications. The present study is focused on an in-depth analysis of bioenergy policy measures undertaken by various federal agencies of different countries in order to shed light on the bottlenecks that impede biofuel's growth as a sustainable and alternative fuel. An in-depth assessment of feedstock utilization, blending targets, and policy assistance schemes have been thoroughly reviewed. In addition, the potential of commercial firms for the production of bioenergy is highlighted in order to grasp the current bioenergy market scenario better. Finally, the article is concluded with the viewpoints of the authors to address the standing issues of global bioenergy generation.
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•Polystyrene microplastics (PS-MPs) cause pulmonary cytotoxicity by inducing ROS.•PS-MPs is associated with impaired pulmonary barrier by depleting ZO proteins.•PS-MPs inhalation ...increases the risk for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.
Microplastics (MPs) have become a global environmental concern. Recent studies have shown that MPs, of which the predominant type is often polystyrene (PS; known as PS-MPs), can extend to and affect remote, sparsely inhabited areas via atmospheric transport. Although exposure to inhaled MPs may induce lung dysfunction, further experimental verification of the pulmonary toxic potential of MPs and the mechanism underlying the toxicity is needed. Here we used normal human lung epithelial BEAS-2B cells to clarify the association between pulmonary toxicity and PS-MPs. Results revealed that PS-MPs can cause cytotoxic and inflammatory effects in BEAS-2B cells by inducing reactive oxygen species formation. PS-MPs can decrease transepithelial electrical resistance by depleting zonula occludens proteins. Indeed, decreased α1-antitrypsin levels in BEAS-2B cells suggest that exposure to PS-MPs increases the risk for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and high concentrations of PS-MPs can induce these adverse responses. While low PS-MP levels can only disrupt the protective pulmonary barrier, they may also increase the risk for lung disease. Collectively, our findings indicate that PS-MP inhalation may influence human respiratory health.
Bio–wastes and their utilization has been increasing enormously, due to its generation and management practices towards making the clearner environment. Bio–waste disposal that follow the emerging ...global human population has commended the hunt to certain methods sustainably for the bio–waste management to overwhelmed the ecological issues, prompted by means of the collection of such waste materials. The bio–conversion process of the various bio–wastes into high value added products seems to be practicable in various venues in terms of technological and financial supports. Thereby, this preface presentat about of bio–wastes management and new trends towards circular economy and challenges to acheive it by considering the Virtual Special Issue (VSI) dedicated in Bioresourse Technology Journal.
Macro- and microalgae-based foods are becoming popular due to their high nutritious value. The algal biomass is enriched with polysaccharides, protein, polyunsaturated fatty acids, carotenoids, ...vitamins and minerals. However, the most promising fraction is polysaccharides (PS) or their derivatives (as dietary fibers) which are not entirely fermented by colonic bacteria hence act as potential prebiotic. Primarily, algae become famous as prominent protein sources. Recently, these are widely adopted as functional food (e.g., desserts, dairy products, oil-derivatives, pastas etc.) or animal feed (for poultry, cattle, fish etc.). Besides prebiotic and balanced amino acids source, algae derived compounds implied as therapeutics due to comprising bioactive properties to elicit immunomodulatory, antioxidative, anticancerous, anticoagulant, hepato-protective, and antihypertensive responses. Despite the above potentials, broader research determinations are inevitable to explore these algal compounds until microalgae become a business reality for broader and specific applications in all health domains. However, scale up of algal bioprocess remains a major challenge until commercial affordability is accomplished which can be possible by discovering their hidden potentials and increasing their value and application prospects. This review provides an overview of the significance of algae consumption for several health benefits in humans and animals mainly as prebiotics, however their functional food and animal feed potential are briefly covered. Moreover, their potential to develop an algal-based food industry to meet the people's requirements not only as a sustainable food solution with several health benefits but also as therapeutics is inevitable.
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•Lignocellulosic (LC) biorefinery is gaining global attention for better feasibility.•LC bioethanol can be integrated with high value biochemicals productions.•Advances in tailor-made ...enzyme cocktails and pretreatments offer brighter scope.•LC biorefinery is being mandatory for better carbon footprints and energy balance.•LC biorefinery exhibit sustainable features for global circular bioeconomy.
The bioprocessing of lignocellulosic biomass to produce bio-based products under biorefinery setup is gaining global attention. The economic viability of this biorefinery would be inclined by the efficient bioconversion of all three major constituents of lignocellulosic biomass i.e. cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin for value-added biochemicals and biofuels production. Although the lignocellulosic biorefinery setup has a clear value proposition, the commercial success at the industrial scale is still inadequate. This can be attributed mainly to irregular biomass supply chain, market uncertainties, and scale-up challenges. Global research efforts are underway by public and private sectors to get deeper market penetration. A comprehensive account of important factors, limitations, and propositions are worth consideration for the commercial success of lignocellulosic biorefineries. In this article, the importance of integration of lignocellulosic biorefineries with existing petrochemical refineries, the technical challenges of industrialization, SWOT analysis, and future directions have been reviewed.
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•Bamboo biochar (BB) is an attractive material for environmental remediation.•Fe3O4–BB activated the accelerated formation of SO4− in persulfate oxidation.•Fe3O4–BB exhibited high ...polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) removal efficiency.•Fe3O4–BB-activated persulfate oxidation can treat PAH-contaminated sediment.
This study developed a new and cost-effective method for the remediation of marine sediments contaminated with PAHs. Fe3O4 particles were synthesized as the active component, supported on bamboo biochar (BB) to form a composite catalyst (Fe3O4–BB). The effects of critical parameters, including the initial pH, sodium persulfate (PS) concentration, and dose of catalyst were investigated. The concentration of high-molecular-weight PAHs in sediments was much higher than that of low-molecular-weight PAHs; pyrene was an especially prominent marker of PAH contamination in sediments. Fe3O4–BB/PS exhibited a substantial improvement in PAH degradation efficiency (degradation rate: Fe3O4–BB/PS, 86%; PS, 14%) at a PS concentration of 1.7×10−5M, catalyst concentration of 3.33g/L, and pH of 3.0. The results of this study demonstrate that possible activation mechanisms include Fe2+–Fe3+ redox coupling and electron shuttling that mediates electron transfer of the BB oxygen functional groups, promoting the generation of SO4− in the Fe3O4–BB/PS system.
•Swine wastewater (SWW) is rich in ammonia-N with potential environmental threats.•Natural treatment systems employ simple ponds with indigenous flora.•Biological methods are carried out in closed ...systems with effective nutrient removal.•Microalgae can assimilate the nutrients in SWW under hetero/mixo-trophic conditions.•Microalgae-based SWW treatment is beneficial compared to other methods.
There is an exponential increase in swine farms around the world to meet the increasing demand for proteins, resulting in a significant amount of swine/piggery wastewater. The wastewater produced in swine farms are rich in ammonia with high eutrophication potential and negative environmental impacts. Safe methods for treatment and disposal of swine wastewater have attracted increased research attention in the recent decades. Conventional wastewater treatment methods are limited by the high ammonia content and chemical/biological oxygen demand of swine wastewater. Recently, microalgal cultivation is being proposed for the phytoremediation of swine wastewater. Microalgae are tolerant to high ammonia levels seen in swine wastewater and they also ensure phosphorus removal simultaneously. This review first gives a brief overview on the conventional methods used for swine wastewater treatment. Microalgae-based processes for the clean-up of swine wastewater are discussed in detail, with their potential advantages and limitations. Future research perspectives are also presented.
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•Recent advances in three primary ethanol reforming routes for H2 production are reviewed.•75 % hydrogen selectivity is attained at 400 °C in all three techniques.•Small-sized ...(3–10 nm) particles have high dispersion and catalytic activity.•Hydrogen selectivity is higher for ESR than POX and ATR.•The addition of oxygen reduces the relative selectivity of hydrogen.
The emerging study of hydrogen energy is receiving substantial attention in the scientific community due to its efficiency in approaching net zero and environmental sustainability. Meanwhile, bioethanol is a sustainable and carbon–neutral fuel for hydrogen production. This research aims to assess various ethanol reforming routes, including ethanol steam reforming, partial oxidation, and autothermal reforming, and evaluate the differences in hydrogen production as a function of catalyst physicochemistry and experimental parameters. For all three techniques, 75 % hydrogen selectivity is attained at 400 °C. In the ethanol steam reforming, non-noble metals (Co and Ni) are more reactive than noble metals (Rh and Ru). However, the sequence of hydrogen selectivity is featured by Rh > Ir > Ru > Pt > Ni > Co in autothermal reforming of ethanol. The partially filled d-orbitals of various transition metals can uptake or provide electrons to various reagents, thereby controlling reaction activity. Non-noble metals are inexpensive, making these catalysts appealing for a variety of reforming processes. The small crystal size <10 nm and the large Brunauer-Emmett-Teller surface area of the metal-support particles regulate the dispersion and reactivity of the catalyst. Hydrogen selectivity is lower in partial oxidation and autothermal reforming, while CO and CO2 exhibit no specific selectivity trend. The reactivity of intermediate reactions such as dehydrogenation and decarbonylation positively correlated with the reaction temperature and the steam/oxygen/ethanol ratio, which regulates syngas product distributions. Overall, this review provides a vision for sustainable hydrogen production and decarbonization to achieve the net zero target.
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•Microwave-BmimCl pretreatment shows the most promising result for sugar release.•The lignin removal was achieved 57.02% by microwave-BmimCl pretreatment.•Microwave-BmimCl ...pretreatment increased glucan conversion to 61.14%.•The reduced CrI and LOI revealed the positive effects of pretreatment.•BmimCl can be recycled and reused without using any antisolvent.
In the present study, was investigated an environmentally friendly method for pretreating lignocellulosic rice straw (RS) by using 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium chloride (BmimCl) as an ionic liquid (IL) and 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium hydrogen sulfate (BmimHSO4) as an acidic-IL (Acidic-IL) under microwave irradiation (microwave-BmimCl and microwave-BmimHSO4). The conversion of lignocellulosic biomass into simple sugars requires both efficient pretreatment and hydrolysis enzymes to produce biofuels and specialty chemicals. Therefore, the applied BmimCl, BmimHSO4, microwave-BmimCl, and microwave-BmimHSO4 to improve hydrolysis yields. Structural analyses of the pretreated solids were performed to understand the synergistic effects of BmimCl, and BmimHSO4 pretreatment under microwave irradiation (microwave-BmimCl and microwave-BmimHSO4) on the efficiencies of enzymatic hydrolyses. The results of a chemical composition analysis of untreated and all pretreated RS samples by using the difference pretreatment methods showed that significant lignin removal was achieved using microwave-BmimCl (57.02 ± 1.24%), followed by BmimCl only (41.01 ± 2.67%), microwave-BmimHSO4 (20.77 ± 1.79%), and BmimHSO4-only (16.88 ± 1.14%). The highest glucan yield and xylan conversion achieved through the enzymatic saccharification of microwave-BmimCl-regenerated cellulose was consistent with the observations obtained from a structural analysis, which indicated a more disrupted, amorphous structure, with lowered crystallinity index (CrI) and lateral order index (LOI) of cellulose polymers. Thus results demonstrated that the pretreatment of lignocellulosic biomass with BmimCl under microwave irradiation has potential as an alternative method for pretreating lignocellulosic materials.
Spatiotemporal variations in the abundance of microplastics (MPs) in surface sediments along the southwestern coast of Taiwan (including harbor and coastal regions) were investigated and the ...diversity, degree of weathering, and inventory of MPs in the sediments further quantified. The spatiotemporal variations of MP characteristics were used to assess possible transport routes of MPs. Results indicated that the average MP abundance in the partially-enclosed harbor region was 79.3 MPs in 1 kg dry sediment (item/kg dw), which was 3–5 times higher than that in the coastal region. Average MP abundance during the dry season (36.5 ± 52.2 item/kg dw) was relatively higher than that during the wet season (22.3 ± 23.2 item/kg dw). The dominant MPs were small (0.1–1.0 mm, 90%), colored (62.3%), and consisted mainly of fibers (54.1%) and fragments (40.5%). Analysis by μFTIR revealed the presence of ten types of polymers in the MPs, with the most abundant being polypropylene (35.1%), rayon (33.2%), and polystyrene (10.0%). Values of the microplastic diversity integrated index (MPDII) indicated that MP diversity was greater in the harbor region (MPDII = 0.62) than in the coastal region (MPDII = 0.51–0.54), and greater during the wet season (MPDII = 0.60) than during the dry season (MPDII = 0.50). As indicated by values of the MP carbonyl index (CI), the MPs exhibited a high degree of oxidation (CI >0.31) that appeared unrelated to spatiotemporal variations. In the dry season, MP inventory was 12.2 tons and the wet season inventory was 8.1 tons. The hydrodynamic forces may be an influenced force for the spatiotemporal distribution patterns of the MPs in surface sediments. MPs could accumulate in the surface sediments during the dry season and resuspend in the wet season with the higher rainfall and then migrate towards the deep sea following the water flow.
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•Spatiotemporal changes of MPs in harbor and coastal sediments were investigated.•Higher MP abundance and inventory and lower MP diversity were found in dry season than in wet season.•No significant difference in the degree of weathering MPs in sediments between dry and wet seasons•MPs in the sediments accumulated during the dry season and were transported during the wet season.•Season's transition may be an influencing factor of MP gradual migration towards the deep sea.
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