Anaerobic Co-digestion of Press mud and Molasses-based Distillery Wastewater for Enhanced Biogas Production

With goals in determining the effect of diluting the distillery wastewater (DWW) and of varying the amount of DWW and press mud (PM), anaerobic co-digestion study was carried out at mesophilic condition in a 2-L Erlenmeyer flask, with a working volume of 800 mL for Batch 1 and 1500 mL for Batch 2 experiments. For Batch 1, two different ratios of DWW and tap water, with 2:3 and 3:2, were used to assess the effect of dilution on the methane yield, where same volumetric amount of PM was added. For Batch 2, following ratio of PM and DWW were used: a) 1:0, b) 1:1, c) 1:1, d) 2:1, and e) 1:2. All samples had the same amount of inoculum, except that Batch 1 samples had bagasse. The parameters that were assessed after 42 days of digestion were: pH, COD, BOD, TSS, VS, Cu, Ca, Mg, Mn, TOC, TN, and methane yield. For the effect of dilution, a significant difference in the methane yield between samples with higher and lower dilution ratio was seen, and in the first batch, the optimal dilution ratio of DWW and H2O, with 3:2 gave higher methane yield of 78.23% (v/v). Meanwhile, optimal volumetric ratio of DWW and PM from the Batch 2 experiments, with value of 1:2, gave the highest methane yield of 79.43% (v/v).

The effect of inoculum and glucose addition on polyhydroxyalkanoate production by Brevibacterium sp. B45

Petroleum-based plastics are the major cause of environmental pollution because the plastics need years to be degraded. The difficulties in handling waste of petroleum-based plastic have motivated researchers to produce environmentally friendly plastic materials that are biologically degradable; one of them is polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA). Polyhydroxyalkanoate is natural biodegradable biopolymers produced by bacteria as an intracellular carbon and energy storage. This polymer is an alternative source of plastics with similar physical properties to petroleum-based plastic.It can be easily biodegraded aerobically and anaerobically. This study examined the potential of one superior isolate as PHA producers, i.e.,Brevibacterium sp. B45. Brevibacterium sp. B45 was cultivated in Ramsay’s minimal medium with inoculum concentrations were 1, 2, and 3% (v/v)and glucose concentrations were 1, 3, and 5% (w/v). The cultivation of Brevibacterium sp. B45 was carried out in a 500 mL Erlenmeyer flask on a shaker incubator with 150 rpm and 30 oC for 72 hours. PHA recovery was carried out by chloroform extraction and characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Fourier transformed infrared (FTIR), and differential scanning calorimetric (DSC) methods. The highest yield of dried biomass (2.92%) was obtained using 3% inoculum and 3% glucose. The melting temperature (Tm), enthalpy (ΔHf), and crystallinity (Xc) of the PHA product were 172.1 °C, 61.04 J g-1, and 41.08%, respectively. Data of SEM show that a porous surface characterized morphological of purified PHA grains. The functional units of purified PHA grains were C=O, CH3, C-O, C-O-C, C-C, C-H, and -OH. The purified PHA grains show a similar spectrum to the standard Poly-3-hydroxybutyrate (PHB). Therefore, it could be assumed that PHA produced by Brevibacterium sp. B45 was most likely PHB.

Novel manifestations of Farber disease mimicking neuronopathic Gaucher disease

Diagnosis of rare disorders requires heightened clinical acumen. When such disorders present with atypical or novel features, it adds to the diagnostic challenge. A 9-month-old female infant who had received a diagnosis of neonatal hepatitis due to cytomegalovirus infection at 2 months of age presented to our institute with developmental delay, fever, vomiting, feeding difficulty, breathlessness and features of elevated intracranial pressure due to hydrocephalus. Key examination findings with cholestatic jaundice as an early manifestation led to suspicion of type 4 Farber disease. Observation of hydrocephalus, hypertension, bilateral pinguecula and Erlenmeyer flask deformity of the femur were unusual findings for Farber disease. The child had few features (pinguecula, Erlenmeyer flask deformity and hydrocephalus) overlapping with Gaucher disease. Alternatively, prosaposin deficiency (Farber disease type 7) was another differential diagnosis. Diagnosis of Farber disease was confirmed by detection of foamy macrophages on skin biopsy and two homozygous missense variants in ASAH1 gene.

Deskripsi Kemampuan Psikomotorik Mahasiswa Pendidikan Kimia pada Titrasi Asam Basa

The background of this research is the need to know the ability of Chemistry Education students, who would be chemistry teacher in the future, in using laboratory equipments, especially in acid-base titration. This study aims to describe the psychomotor ability of Chemistry Education students in acid-base titration. The research method used is descriptive with the instrument which is observation sheet and interview guide. The analyses result shows that the average psychomotor ability of Chemistry Education students is 82.16%, which is categorized as very well. These skills include assembling titration tools which is categorized well with an average percentage of 76.38%, pouring NaOH solution into the burette which is categorized very well with an average percentage of 81.94%, taking the solution which is going to be analyzed into the Erlenmeyer flask which is categorized well with an average percentage of 77.78%, conducting titration which is categorized very well with the average percentage of 86.11%, observing the volume of titrant and the color of analyte which is categorized as enough with average percentage of 60.41%.

Improving the quantitative classification of Erlenmeyer flask deformities

The Erlenmeyer flask deformity is a common skeletal modeling deformity, but current classification systems are binary and may restrict its utility as a predictor of associated skeletal conditions. A quantifiable 3-point system of severity classification could improve its predictive potential in disease. Ratios were derived from volumes of regions of interests drawn in 50 Gaucher’s disease patients. ROIs were drawn from the distal physis to 2 cm proximal, 2 cm to 4 cm, and 4 cm to 6 cm. Width was also measured at each of these boundaries. Two readers rated these 100 femurs using a 3-point scale of severity classification. Weighted kappa indicated reliability and one-way analysis of variance characterized ratio differences across the severity scale. Accuracy analyses allowed determination of clinical cutoffs for each ratio. Pearson’s correlations assessed the associations of volume and width with a shape-based concavity metric of the femur. The volume ratio incorporating the metaphyseal region from 0 to 2 cm and the diametaphyseal region at 4–6 cm was most accurate at distinguishing femurs on the 3-point scale. Receiver operating characteristic curves for this ratio indicated areas of 0.95 to distinguish normal and mild femurs and 0.93 to distinguish mild and severe femurs. Volume was moderately associated with the degree of femur concavity. The proposed volume ratio method is an objective, proficient method at distinguishing severities of the Erlenmeyer flask deformity with the potential for automation. This may have application across diseases associated with the deformity and deficient osteoclast-mediated modeling of growing bone.

Microbial Reclamation of Chitin and Protein-Containing Marine By-Products for the Production of Prodigiosin and the Evaluation of Its Bioactivities

Chitin and protein-containing marine by-products (CPCMBPs), including crab shells, squid pens, and shrimp shells, were investigated as the sole carbon/nitrogen (C/N) source for prodigiosin (PG) production by Serratia marcescens TNU01 in a 250 mL Erlenmeyer flask and a 10 L bioreactor system. Among the used C/N source of CPCMBPs, squid pens powder (SPP) showed the most optimum PG productivity. Different ratios of chitin/protein combination were also used as the C/N sources for PG production. With a similar chitin/protein ratio (4/6) of squid pens, a significant PG productivity was achieved when the chitin/protein ratios were controlled in the range of 3/7–4/6. Maximum PG yield (3450 mg/L) by S. marcescens TNU01 was achieved in the bioreactor system containing 3 L medium of 1.75% SPP, 0.03% K2HPO4, and 0.05% MgSO4 at 25 °C for 12 h in dark. The results of in vitro bioassays reveal that the purified PG possesses acetylcholinesterase inhibitory activity and antioxidant as well as anticancer activities. This study suggests that squid pens may have the potential to be used for cost effective production of bioactive PG at a large-scale.

Ethanol Production from Hydrolyzed Kraft Pulp by Mono- and Co-Cultures of Yeasts: The Challenge of C6 and C5 Sugars Consumption

Second-generation bioethanol production’s main bottleneck is the need for a costly and technically difficult pretreatment due to the recalcitrance of lignocellulosic biomass (LCB). Chemical pulping can be considered as a LCB pretreatment since it removes lignin and targets hemicelluloses to some extent. Chemical pulps could be used to produce ethanol. The present study aimed to investigate the batch ethanol production from unbleached Kraft pulp of Eucalyptus globulus by separate hydrolysis and fermentation (SHF). Enzymatic hydrolysis of the pulp resulted in a glucose yield of 96.1 ± 3.6% and a xylose yield of 94.0 ± 7.1%. In an Erlenmeyer flask, fermentation of the hydrolysate using Saccharomyces cerevisiae showed better results than Scheffersomyces stipitis. At both the Erlenmeyer flask and bioreactor scale, co-cultures of S. cerevisiae and S. stipitis did not show significant improvements in the fermentation performance. The best result was provided by S. cerevisiae alone in a bioreactor, which fermented the Kraft pulp hydrolysate with an ethanol yield of 0.433 g·g−1 and a volumetric ethanol productivity of 0.733 g·L−1·h−1, and a maximum ethanol concentration of 19.24 g·L−1 was attained. Bioethanol production using the SHF of unbleached Kraft pulp of E. globulus provides a high yield and productivity.

Utilization of Fruit Waste for Bioethanol Production by Co-cultures of Aspergillus niger and Saccharomyces cerevisiae

The purpose of this research was to study the effectiveness of simultaneous fermentation offruit waste with co-cultures of Aspergillus niger TISTR 3063 and Saccharomyces cerevisiaeTISTR 5606 in production of ethanol. The effect of fermentation temperature on ethanol yield was also observed. Pomelo and banana peels were selected as substrates and prepared by chopping into small rectangular pieces. Fermentation of batches of fruit waste was carriedout using a 250mL Erlenmeyer flask with glucose as a control. Analysis of the composition of the fruit waste included sugar, pH, TS, VS, ash, moisture, COD and TKN. From the results, it was found that maximum yields of 90.71% and 104.90% for pomelo and banana peel, respectively, were achieved at a temperature of 40°C within 24 h. The analysis also showed that fermentation temperature affected ethanol yield. When the fermentation temperature was raised from 30°C to 40°C, maximum ethanol yield from pomelo peel fermentation with10% of inoculum was increased from 73.86% to 90.71%, significant at p-0.05 Maximum yield from banana peel fermentation showed a similar trend. This study establishes the potential for upgrading fruit wastes such as pomelo and banana peels as high value substrates for ethanol production. Pomelo peel in particular shows high potential as a substrate for ethanol fermentation at 40°C for 24 h, with inoculum of 10% (w/w) of each fungus and yeast.

Kesetimbangan sorpsi ion seng(ii) pada partikel gambut

Extensive exposure of zinc(II) ions may cause eminent health problems, such as stomach cramps, skin irritations, vomiting, anaemia, a damage of pancreas, the disturbance of protein metabolism, and also respiratory disorders. Due to these problems, zinc(II) concentration in drinking water should be controlled. Peat is one of the material that can be used to minimize zinc(II) ions from a solution. The study was done to determine the performance and sorption equilibrium of zinc ions onto oligothropic peat particles. The sorption experiments were conducted in a several batch reactor of erlenmeyer flask at a constant temperature of 26 ± 3 oC. The initial zinc ions concentration and pH were varied. Response variable was residual zinc concentration that was measured spectrophotometrically. Experimental data show that the optimum sorption efficiency was about 90% for the initial zinc(II) concentration of 50 mg/L. Sorption equilibrium can be represented by the Freundlich and Langmuir isotherm models. For the initial pH of 6, the optimum sorption capacity, qo was 3,736 mg/g, and the Freundlich’s characteristic constant, Kf was about 0,342 L/g. Key words : peat, sorption equilibrium, sorption isotherm, zinc(II) ions AbstrakPaparan ion seng(II) pada kadar tertentu dapat menyebabkan berbagai masalah kesehatan seperti kram perut, iritasi kulit, batuk, anemia, kerusakan pankreas, gangguan metabolisme protein, penyumbatan pembuluh darah, hingga kerusakan sistem pernafasan. Karena itu, seng(II) termasuk kategori unsur yang harus dibatasi konsentrasinya dalam air minum. Gambut adalah salah satu material yang dapat digunakan untuk mengurangi ion seng dari larutan. Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk mempelajari performansi dan kesetimbangan sorpsi ion seng(II) pada partikel gambut oligotropik Indonesia. Penelitian dilakukan secara batch di dalam sejumlah labu erlenmeyer pada temperatur konstan 26 ± 3 oC. Eksperimen dilakukan dalam beberapa variasi konsentrasi awal ion seng dan pH. Data primer adalah konsentrasi residual seng dalam larutan yang diukur secara spektrofotometrik. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa efisiensi optimum sorpsi mencapai lebih dari 90% untuk konsentrasi awal seng 50 mg/L. Kesetimbangan sorpsi logam seng(II) pada partikel gambut dapat direpresentasikan dengan baik oleh model isoterm Freundlich dan Langmuir. Untuk rentang pH awal 6, nilai kapasitas sorpsi optimum, qo adalah 3,736 mg/g, sedangkan nilai konstanta karakteristik Freundlich, Kf adalah 0,342 L/g. Kata kunci : efisiensi sorpsi, gambut, isoterm sorpsi, ion seng(II)