Activated carbon monolith (ACM) was prepared from waste corrugated cardboard box (WCCB) via slurrying in seawater (SW) followed by dewatering, molding and heating under CO
2
atmosphere. The thermal ...process was analyzed by thermogravimetric analyzer coupled with Fourier transform infrared spectrometer (TG-FTIR). ACM was characterized by N
2
-adsorption/desorption, FTIR, Raman spectroscopy and ultraviolet–visible-near infrared (UV–Vis-NIR) spectroscopy. The adsorption behavior of ACM for methylene blue (MB) and its solar steam generation performance were investigated. Results showed alkali and alkaline earth metals (AAEMs) in SW promoted the occurrence of pyrolysis of cellulose in WCCB at lower temperatures but inhibited the formation of organic volatiles, and the activation energy was reduced by 24.53 kJ mol
−1
. AAEMs catalyzed the formation of more CO during CO
2
gasification of WCCB char between 755 and 860 °C, and the activation reaction with higher degree led to the formation of more micro- and mesopores in ACM at 785 °C. The adsorption behavior of ACM for MB fitted Langmuir model with a monolayer adsorption capacity of 174 mg g
−1
, and ACM in floating state was also effective in adsorption of MB from water. ACM exhibited high optical absorption above 90% within a broadband wavelength, and 66.7% higher water evaporation can be achieved with the assistance of ACM during solar steam generation under the same condition.
Corrugated cardboard boxes are one of the largest paper-based packaging forms used for shipping and handling of wide variety of products in different end-use industries due to low cost, low weight ...and recyclability. Due to its organic composition, they are highly susceptible to spoilage from heat-resistant microbial spores, leading to economic losses and health risks. In this study, the efficacy of lipopeptides produced from Bacillus amyloliquefaciens MTCC 10456 against thermotolerant Thermoascus crustaceus, Neosartorya hiratsukae and Bacillus subtilis, isolated from spoiled cardboard boxes, was investigated. Lipopeptides were isolated by salt-precipitation of fermentation broth and activity-guided Reverse Phase-High Performance Liquid Chromatography (RP-HPLC). Inhibitory fractions consisted of bacillomycin D and surfactin, which were identified using liquid chromatography-electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (LC-ESI-MS/MS) analysis. Mixture of lipopeptides with nisin (3:2 w/w) asserted significant synergistic effect on the tested pathogens which reduced the minimum inhibitory concentrations (MIC) values and increased their inhibition spectra. Preservative coating containing lipopeptides and nisin was applied on the corrugated cardboard surfaces by mixing with starch-based additive by spread-coating method. It demonstrated biopreservative efficacy against the targeted microorganisms at during the observational period of 180 days. Reduction in microbial count of 4 log cycles was observed in 20 days and showed controlled release of coated peptides which indicate its suitability for packaging purposes. Findings from this study suggests an effective and scalable strategy to prevent microbial spoilage thereby extending the storage period of cardboard boxes.
Greenhouse gas emission is a major contributor to climate change and global warming. Many sustainability efforts are aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions. These include recycling and the use of ...renewable energy. In the case of recycling, the general population is typically required to at least temporarily store, and possibly haul, the materials rather than simply throwing them away. This effort from the general population is a key aspect of recycling, and in order for it to work, some investment of time and effort is required by the public. In the case of corrugated cardboard boxes, it has been observed that there is less motivation for the general population to recycle them. This paper explores different means of motivating people to reuse, and not just recycle, with different types of incentives. The paper addresses the use of persuasion techniques and operant conditioning techniques together to incent the general population to adopt sustainable efforts. The paper makes an attempt to segment the general population based on persuasion preference, operant condition preference, and personality type to use different forms of incentives and motivational work unlike any approaches found in the literature review. Four types of persuasion techniques and four types of operant conditioning are combined to give 16 different types of incentives. Two online surveys are conducted, and their data are analyzed (using entropy, Hamming distance, chi-square, and ANOVA). The results indicate that “positive reinforcement ethos” is a cost-effective way to incent the general population. The results of this study can be applied to a wide range of applications such as incentives for solar panels, incentives for vaccination, and other areas wherein sustainability-centric behavior is encouraged.
Packaging made from corrugated cardboard is a widely used solution in modern supply chains for the handling, storage and distribution of goods. These packages are required to maintain adequate ...protection conditions; however, in many cases, the cardboard box dimensions, handles and/or ventilation holes, quality and their configuration could compromise its protection strength. This study observes and evaluates the performance of corrugated cardboard boxes made with B-flute boards by considering different cutout sizes from the side walls (0%, 20%, 40%, 60% and 80%) in various box length–width ratios of 200 mm, 300 mm, 400 mm, 500 mm and 600 mm in length and a constant 300 mm width and height. Box compression tests were performed in a laboratory, and results were compared with mathematical statistics. In each cutout case, the maximum compression force was observed with the box with dimensions of 400 × 300 × 300 mm. The measurement results showed that the 1.33 length-to-width ratio has the best maximum compression force result. The statistical tests showed that there is no significant difference between the 0% and 20% cutout groups.
Mechanically robust Fe
3
O
4
/porous carbon/diatomite composite monolith was prepared from waste corrugated cardboard box and diatomite via slurrying in FeCl
3
solution, dewatering, molding, and ...carbonization at 600 °C. The products were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), field emission scanning electron microscope (SEM), N
2
-adsorption/desorption, Raman spectroscopy, and ultraviolet-visible-near-infrared (UV-Vis-NIR) spectroscopy. The water wettability, photothermal conversion property, and solar steam generation performance of the products were also evaluated. Results showed that the presence of FeCl
3
led to the formation of more pores and magnetic Fe
3
O
4
crystallites, while diatomite provided good hydrophilicity for the composite. The product exhibited light absorption above 65% within the wavelength ranging from 200 to1974 nm, and its surface temperature eventually increased by 30 °C under 0.25 sun irradiation due to photothermal effect. Moreover, solar steam yield under 0.25 sun irradiation for 3600 s was improved by 67% with the presence of the monolithic composite because of the occurrence of interfacial solar steam generation and heat transfer from the composite acted as a heat island.
Corrugated cardboard is very sensitive to atmospheric conditions. The aim of this work is to study the effects of these parameters, in fact the relative humidity (RH), on the mechanical behaviour of ...a sandwich structure of the corrugated cardboard type. For that, tensile tests were used under various rates of relative humidity. In high rates of moisture, the instrumentation must be adapted. A preliminary comparison of several measurement methods of the mechanical properties was carried out. It made it possible to validate the method of strain measurement using the measurement of the displacement which requires a minimal handling of the specimen. During this study, the effect of the water content on the mechanical properties is presented. Moreover, the viscoelastic character coupled with the damage of this material is high lighted.
Innovations occur in the design of structural elements in order to incorporate and/or improve technical features. This study begins with a standard design for one‐way reinforced pre‐slabs. Thermal ...performance is analyzed, along with the possibility of improving it, by means of incorporating corrugated cardboard. Tests were conducted with prototypes to investigate the viability of integrating corrugated cardboard into the production process of reinforced concrete pre‐slabs. The modified production processes (of corrugated cardboard and concrete pre‐slabs) and the improvements in thermal performance were evident in the final design. These improvements as compared to the conventional design are quantified by thermal transmittance, which was between 90.16 and 140.98% when utilizing corrugated cardboard with a thermal conductivity between 0.10 and 0.05 W m−1 K−1 respectively. Adding this new material and modifying the resistance section did entail an increase in cost. However, the joint evaluation of the production and use phases of the structural element designed indicated a positive economic balance. It was found that with the new design, the structural solution's thermal performance improved and compensated for the increase in costs incurred during the production phase.
Corrugated and composite materials can significantly outperform traditional materials. Nowadays, such materials have gained more and more attention and application not only in theoretical, ...experimental or numerical scientific studies but also in daily industrial problems, which require innovative solutions. The specific geometry of a corrugated layer, or the combination of two or more materials in the structures allows the mechanical properties with specific features favorable for use in a specific engineering problem to be obtained. For example, due to the specific compositions of the corrugated materials, the ratio of the load capacity to the weight of the sections is much higher than that of traditional solid sections. Therefore, such materials should be used when the weight of the structure must be optimized or the structure must have openwork geometry. Among others, the composites can be employed for a variety of purposes, for example, in corrugated boards in the packaging industry; in soft-core sandwich panels, window frames in structural engineering; in wings in commercial, civilian and military aerospace applications; in the vehicle and its equipment devices, including, panels, frames or other interior components; in fans, grating, tanks, ducts and pumps in environmental installations; in electrical engineering in switchgear, motor controls, control system components or circuit breakers; and in many more. This Special Issue “Mechanics of Corrugated and Composite Materials” addresses selected knowledge gaps and aids advance in this area.
Recently, corrugated cardboard furniture gained interest from the market, yet is limited to indoor application. With an aim toward outdoor usage, water-barrier improvement of such products must be ...achieved. In this work, three commercially available coating grades (i.e., polymeric, mineral-filled polymeric, and hybrid silica sol-gel products) were spray-coated on corrugated cardboard using a facile, yet readily transferable, process. The investigation assessed the coating performance from the different drying conditions and natural UV-vis weathering effects, characterising their water absorption, hydrophobicity, coating morphology, and colour change. Results show a reduction in water absorption values (up to −98%) for both the polymeric coatings; instead, the hybrid sol-gel coating showed contact angles up to almost 150°. Generally, the SEM micrographs displayed some surface defects as well as good thickness homogeneity. A perceivable colour change occurred for each sample (CIEDE2000 up to 6.41), mainly occurring in the 0–100 h time range. This work provides promising results for the outdoor application of corrugated cardboard furniture.
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