Environmental and Performance Assessment of Fabricated Hydrophobic and Flame-Retardant Cotton Fabrics with Functional Integrated Graphene

There is a conflict between enhancing the functionality of products and reducing the environmental impact of manufacturing in the materials industry. Using green chemicals or adopting cleaner production processes can help overcome this conflict. However, researchers usually neglect the substitution effect when selecting green technology, namely, that investing more in chemical development decreases the resources used in cleaner process techniques. This study demonstrated this substitution effect in the modification of cotton fabrics. We fabricated hydrophobic and flame-retardant cotton fabrics with functional integrated graphene. It was found that these fabrics can be prepared in one step. As seen from an environmental assessment, applying functional integrated graphene can decrease the time required, reduce the energy consumption, and reduce the wastewater discharge. Based on the hydrophobicity-flame retardancy quadrant, we found that functional integrated graphene can improve the compatibility of different functionalities. On the other hand, compared to the use of commercial finishing agents, using functional integrated graphene can reduce organic discharge by up to 92%. This study demonstrates that using green chemicals can reduce pollution discharge and result in a cleaner production process. This study also provided atom economic ideas for green modification of cellulosic materials.

Co-Management of Sewage Sludge and Other Organic Wastes: A Scandinavian Case Study

Wastewater and sewage sludge contain organic matter that can be valorized through conversion into energy and/or green chemicals. Moreover, resource recovery from these wastes has become the new focus of wastewater management, to develop more sustainable processes in a circular economy approach. The aim of this review was to analyze current sewage sludge management systems in Scandinavia with respect to resource recovery, in combination with other organic wastes. As anaerobic digestion (AD) was found to be the common sludge treatment approach in Scandinavia, different available organic municipal and industrial wastes were identified and compared, to evaluate the potential for expanding the resource recovery by anaerobic co-digestion. Additionally, a full-scale case study of co-digestion, as strategy for optimization of the anaerobic digestion treatment, was presented for each country, together with advanced biorefinery approaches to wastewater treatment and resource recovery.

Green Design of Novel Starch-Based Packaging Materials Sustaining Human and Environmental Health

A critical overview of current approaches to the development of starch-containing packaging, integrating the principles of green chemistry (GC), green technology (GT) and green nanotechnology (GN) with those of green packaging (GP) to produce materials important for both us and the planet is given. First, as a relationship between GP and GC, the benefits of natural bioactive compounds are analyzed and the state-of-the-art is updated in terms of the starch packaging incorporating green chemicals that normally help us to maintain health, are environmentally friendly and are obtained via GC. Newer approaches are identified, such as the incorporation of vitamins or minerals into films and coatings. Second, the relationship between GP and GT is assessed by analyzing the influence on starch films of green physical treatments such as UV, electron beam or gamma irradiation, and plasma; emerging research areas are proposed, such as the use of cold atmospheric plasma for the production of films. Thirdly, the approaches on how GN can be used successfully to improve the mechanical properties and bioactivity of packaging are summarized; current trends are identified, such as a green synthesis of bionanocomposites containing phytosynthesized metal nanoparticles. Last but not least, bioinspiration ideas for the design of the future green packaging containing starch are presented.

A Green Electrochemistry Experimental Kit: Student’s Achievements on Lectrofun 2.0

The study aimed at developing and evaluating a simple green electrochemistry experimental kit named Lectrofun 2.0. Lectrofun 2.0 is an educational kit equipped with a module built with the criteria of user-friendly, costeffective, and laboratory free. The basic concept of electrochemistry was introduced through a guided learning approach via the module. The objectives of this research were to (1) develop Lectrofun 2.0 module using green chemicals, recyclable and easily accessible materials and (2) evaluate the module effectiveness in terms of student achievement/understanding of the Electrochemistry topic. This is a Design and Development Research (DDR) using the ADDIE model as an instructional design model. The development phase involves the first objective of the study, while the evaluation phase involves the second objective. Total of 46 respondents of pre-post tests were involved in evaluating effectiveness of Lectrofun 2.0 in terms of student achievement/understanding of the topic. The findings showed that 73.9% of students from the treatment group showed 4-grade increment (from grade E to grade A). This study showed that Lectrofun 2.0 has a significant impact on enhancing learner comprehension of Electrochemistry topic, enjoyment in learning, and learning to care for the environment.

Anaerobic Digestion for Producing Renewable Energy—The Evolution of This Technology in a New Uncertain Scenario

Anaerobic digestion is a well-known technology with wide application in the treatment of high-strength organic wastes. The economic feasibility of this type of installation is usually attained thanks to the availability of fiscal incentives. In this review, an analysis of the different factors associated with this biological treatment and a description of alternatives available in literature for increasing performance of the process were provided. The possible integration of this process into a biorefinery as a way for producing energy and chemical products from the conversion of wastes and biomass also analyzed. The future outlook of anaerobic digestion will be closely linked to circular economy principles. Therefore, this technology should be properly integrated into any production system where energy can be recovered from organics. Digestion can play a major role in any transformation process where by-products need further stabilization or it can be the central core of any waste treatment process, modifying the current scheme by a concatenation of several activities with the aim of increasing the efficiency of the conversion. Thus, current plants dedicated to the treatment of wastewaters, animal manures, or food wastes can become specialized centers for producing bio-energy and green chemicals. However, high installation costs, feedstock dispersion and market distortions were recognized as the main parameters negatively affecting these alternatives.