Enhanced straw fermentation process based on microbial electrolysis cell coupled anaerobic digestion

The low quality and yield of methane severely hinder the industrial application of straw biogas fermentation, and no effective solution has been found so far. In this study, a novel method was developed when a microbial electrolysis cell(MEC) was coupled with normal anaerobic fermentation to enhance methane yield and purity. The fermentation process achieved a methane purity of more than 85%, which is considerably higher than that of previously published reports. With microbial stimulation and an electric current, the degradation of fibers has been greatly enhanced. The MEC system substantially improved the yield and purity of biogas, bringing a new path to the synthesis of methane by carbon dioxide and hydrogen ions in solution under electron irradiation. Electrochemical index analysis showed extra methane synthesis, due to the external circuit electron transfer. The results of the gas chromatography and solid degradation rate showed that the carbon source of extra methane was CO_(2) produced during normal fermentation and additional volatile solid degradation. These results show that the MEC considerably enhanced the quality and yield of methane in the straw fermentation process, providing insights into normal anaerobic fermentation.

Light-triggered NO-releasing nanoparticles for treating mice with liver fibrosis

Liver fibrosis, resulting from chronic liver damage and characterized by the accumulation of extracellular matrix (ECM) proteins, is a characteristic of most types of chronic liver diseases. The activation of hepatic stellate cells (HSC) is considered an essential pathological hallmark in liver fibrosis. Although nitric oxide (NO) can effectively induce HSC apoptosis, the systemic administration of NO is ineffective and may cause severe complications such as hypotension. To overcome this limitation, nanoparticles were designed to target HSCs and release NO locally under the exposure of near infrared light (NIR). To achieve this, upconversion nanoparticle (UCNP) cores were enveloped in mesoporous silica shells (UCNP@mSiO2), which were modified with hyaluronic acid (HA-UCNP@mSiO2) and Roussin’s black salt (RBS). HA molecules recognize and bind to CD44 proteins, which are overexpressed on activated HSCs. Under exposure to a 980-nm NIR laser, the UCNP cores convert the 980-nm wavelength into ultraviolet (UV) light, which then energizes the RBS (NO donors), resulting in an efficient release of NO inside of the HSCs. Once released, NO triggers HSC apoptosis and reverses the liver fibrosis. This targeted and controlled release method provides the theoretical and experimental basis for novel therapeutic approaches to treat hepatic fibrosis.

Validation of Bacteroidales-based microbial source tracking markers for pig fecal pollution and their application in two rivers of North China

In China,pig feces is the predominant source of excrement produced b y animal husbandry.Improper use or direct discharge of pig feces can result in contamination of natural water systems.Microbial source tracking(MST)technology can identify the sources of fecal pollution in environmental water,and contribute to the management of pig fecal pollution by local environmental protection agencies.However,the accuracy of such assays can be context-dependent,and they have not been comprehensively evaluated under Chinese conditions.We aimed to compare the performance of five previously reported nig-specific MST assays(PF,Pig-Bac 1 STBR,Pig-Bac2 SYBR,Pig-1-Bac TaqMan,and Pig-2-Bac TaqMan,which are based on Bacteroidales 16S rRNA gene markers)and apply them in two rivers of North China.We collected a total of 173 fecal samples from pigs,cows,goats,chickens,humans,and horses across China.The PF assay optimized in this study showed outstanding qualitative performance and achieved 100%specificity and sensitivity.However,the two SYBR green qPCR assays(Pig-Bac1 SYBR and Pig-Bac2 SYBR)cross-reacted with most non-pig fecal samples.In contrast,both the Pig-l-Bac TaqMan and Pig-2-Bacr TaqMan assays gave 100%specificity and sensitivity.Of these,the Pig-2-Bac TaqMan assay showed higher reproducibility.Our results regarding the specificity of these pig-specific MST assays differ from those reported in Thailand,Japan,and America.Using the PF and Pig-2-Bac TaqMan assays,a field test comparing the levels of pig fecal pollution in rivers near a pig farm before and after comprehensive environmental pollution governance indicated that pig fecal pollution was effectively controlled at this location.

The Crank-Nicolson/Explicit Scheme for the Natural Convection Equations with Nonsmooth Initial Data

In this article,a Crank-Nicolson/Explicit scheme is designed and analyzed for the time-dependent natural convection problem with nonsmooth initial data.The Galerkin finite element method(FEM)with stable MINI element is used for the velocity and pressure and linear polynomial for the temperature.The time discretization is based on the Crank-Nicolson scheme.In order to simplify the computations,the nonlinear terms are treated by the explicit scheme.The advantages of our numerical scheme can be list as follows:(1)The original problem is split into two linear subproblems,these subproblems can be solved in each time level in parallel and the computational sizes are smaller than the origin one.(2)A constant coefficient linear discrete algebraic system is obtained in each subproblem and the computation becomes easy.The main contributions of this work are the stability and convergence results of numerical solutions with nonsmooth initial data.Finally,some numerical results are presented to verify the established theoretical results and show the performances of the developed numerical scheme.