Applied Water Science最新文献

After precipitation, reference evapotranspiration (ET_O) plays a crucial role in the hydrological cycle as it quantifies water loss. ET_O significantly impacts the water balance and holds great importance at the basin level because of the spatial distribution of managing water resources. Large scale teleconnection indices (LSTIs) play a vital role by influencing climatic variables and can be pivotal in determining ET_O and its predictive variables. This study aimed to model and forecast annual ET_O in Iran’s basins by utilizing LSTIs and employing various machine learning models (MLMs) such as least squares support vector machine, generalized regression neural network, multi-linear regression (MLR), and multi-layer perceptron (MLP). Initially, climate data from 122 synoptic stations covering six and 30, main and sub basins were collected, and annual ET_O values were computed using the Food and Agriculture Organization 56 (PMF 56) Penman–Monteith equation. The correlations between these values and 37 LSTIs were examined within lead times ranging from 7 to 12 months. Through a stepwise approach, the most influential predictor indices (LSTIs) were selected as input datasets for the MLMs. The findings revealed the significant influence of factors such as carbon dioxide (CO₂), Atlantic multidecadal oscillation, Atlantic Meridional Mode, and East Atlantic on annual ET_O. Overall, all MLMs performed well in terms of the Scatter Index during both training and testing phases across all sub-basins. Furthermore, the MLP and MLR models displayed superior performance compared to other models in the training and testing evaluations based on various assessment metrics.

Assessing the groundwater quality is important for the efficient exploitation of water resources in semi-arid areas. The study area in northeast Algeria mostly depends on groundwater as its main source of water, and the quality of groundwater is becoming important due to the increasing need for freshwater. The hydrochemical characteristics and water quality of groundwater in the Tebessa-Ain Chabro were assessed using water quality indices, geochemical modeling, and multivariate statistical approaches. The study discovered that the groundwater samples could be classified into four distinct water groups using hierarchical cluster analysis in Q mode (HCA) based on their electrical conductivity. We identified three forms of water: mixed (Ca²⁺–Mg²⁺–Cl⁻), Na⁺–K⁺–HCO₃⁻, and Ca²⁺–Cl⁻. According to the water quality assessment, only 38% of the samples were deemed suitable for human consumption, while 34% were categorized as poor water, 10% as extremely poor, and 17% as unsafe for drinking. The irrigation water quality index identified four classifications: low, moderate, high, and severe restriction, with corresponding percentages of 31%, 31%, 7%, and 31%. The nitrate pollution index (NPI) showed that 48% of samples fell into the moderate pollution class. Human activity, such as sewage infiltration and waste disposal in open areas, was the cause of this nitrate contamination. The saturation index values showed that groundwater was less saturated in halite and sylvite and more saturated in aragonite, calcite, dolomite, anhydrite, gypsum, and hydroxyapatite. The Tebessa region’s groundwater’s hydrochemical properties and water quality have been assessed using multivariate statistical techniques, geochemical modeling, and water quality indexes. The study’s conclusions can provide a foundation for upcoming research evaluating the region’s groundwater quality.

Nanocomposites based on inorganic/graphene nanoparticles have gained remarkable interest as a novel class of hybrid materials. Scientific community attention towards these substances has been increasing, because of their peculiar characteristics in combining anticipated features of building constructs for specified applications. Graphene oxide (GO) and metal nanoparticles (MNPs) are using separately in different applications due to their specific limitations. Researchers continue to explore ways to overcome these challenges and create functional nanomaterials for various fields by combining unique advantages of GO and MNPs. Here, we used a facile one-step method for the synthesis of reduced graphene oxide–palladium composite (RGO/Pd). Environmental-friendly biofabricated palladium nanoparticles adhered to Polyscias scutellaria (PS) leaf extract mediated RGO/Pd have been presented in the current investigation. The biofabricated nanohybrid (RGO/Pd) was analysed utilizing several microscopic and spectroscopic techniques. Further, we have also examined the catalytic function for the reduction of 2-nitroaniline (2-NA) in detail. Primarily, we observed that the synthesized nanocomposite can catalyse simultaneous reduction of 2-NA. Furthermore, an added advantage of the as prepared RGO/Pd nanocomposite is its antimicrobial and antifungal ability. Further, we exhibited that the mesenchymal stem cells of adult goat were viable in the presence of RGO/Pd of 0.1 mg/mL concentration and their properties of stem cells were retained. The outcomes displayed that the nanocomposites exhibited outstanding functioning in the killing of dangerous microbial and fungal pathogens. All these results strengthen the RGO/Pd composite applicability in future for potential therapy in bone tissue engineering applications.

Herein, La@M_xO_y/TiO₂ (M = V, Cr, Mn and Fe) composite catalysts were prepared based on the sol–gel method as an effective adsorbent and photocatalyst for the degradation of malachite green from an aqueous solution under UV–Vis light. Under experimental conditions, a maximum adsorption capacity of 57.10% for the malachite green dye was achieved with La@Fe₂O₃/TiO₂. Moreover, this composite showed 78.62% photodegradation efficiency for malachite green. A quadratic model constructed using the response surface method showed that the maximum efficiency of photodegradation of malachite green can be achieved at pH 11 and a process time of 35 min.

Many coastal and island communities depend on groundwater as the only source of freshwater, making it an invaluable resource. In the Mediterranean region, groundwater resources are highly vulnerable to natural and anthropogenic pressures, such as overexploitation, climate change, seasonal variations in precipitation, and seawater intrusion. Hence, an understanding of hydrogeological processes and groundwater chemistry is a basis for the sustainable management of coastal and island groundwater resources. Vis, a small and remote karst island in the Adriatic Sea, exhibits peculiar geological and hydrogeological settings, resulting in the island’s autonomous water supply. The current pumping capacity (maximum of 42 l/s) meets most of the demand, but intensive summer tourism and climate change exert high stress on groundwater resources during the dry season. Consequently, in the last decade, occasional reductions for consumers occurred. Monitoring of in situ physicochemical parameters and groundwater sampling for chemical and isotopic analyses were conducted from 2020 to 2023 at deep borewells, shallow dug wells, and springs. Hydrochemical interpretation indicated that groundwater chemistry was affected primarily by carbonate and sulfate rock dissolution, mixing with seawater, reverse ion exchange, and dedolomitization. The majority of groundwater samples exhibit Ca–HCO₃ hydrochemical facies, followed by Na–Cl and mixed facies. The low percentage of seawater in the mixture indicated that seawater intrusion is not too extensive even during prolonged dry periods, implying a favorable hydrostatic regime with relatively small but sufficient groundwater reserves of the island’s aquifers, although the investigated period was characterized by significantly lower precipitation with respect to the 30-year average.

Activated sludge has a high diversity of infectious agents. However, many of these microorganisms contribute greatly to the biological treatment process due to the enzyme production and capability for degrading a wide range of organic compounds in wastewater. The present review discusses the potential of aerobic granular sludge as a bio-startup (AGS-BS-up) for new wastewater treatment plants. The complex microbial community in activated sludge was investigated using 16S metagenomic analysis. The potential of aerobic granular sludge prepared from activated sludge to be used as a bio-starting medium for food wastewater treatment plants (FWWTP) was discussed. AGS-BS-up appears to have high applicability to enhance the biological treatment of food wastewater (FWW). The hypothesis behind using aerobic granular sludge as a bio-startup for FWWTP lies in the high microbial biodiversity in the aerobic granular sludge, which contributes effectively to the biological treatment of food wastewater. Based on the previous studies, the AGS-BS-up is efficient in improving the quality of FWW to meet international standards required for safe disposal into the environment.

In this study, the effect of using a hybrid solar thermal-activated adsorption desalination system for brackish water is evaluated under the climatic conditions of the Brazilian semiarid region. The proposed theoretical model utilizes climatic data from the meteorological station in Campina Grande, PB, and adsorptive kinetics data of Fuji Davison RD 260 silica gel to predict the performance indices of the specific daily water production (SDWP), specific cooling power (SCP), and coefficient of performance (COP) performance coefficients over a characteristic day. The SDWP value of 6.26 m3/ton, SCP ranging from 50 to 300 W/kg, and an average COP of 0.5 were obtained, considering variations in global horizontal irradiance in the ACDS system and transient ambient temperature. It was observed that both the production of desalinated water and the refrigeration effect increase with the rise in daily solar irradiance. The variation in the number of solar collectors used in the system and their optimality, as well as the variation in the salinity index of the feed source, impacted the evaluated performance coefficients.

The study was designed to explore the efficiency of magnetite nanoparticles (Fe₃O₄ NPs)/bacterial cell assembly to biodegrade lignin and lignocellulose, decontaminate pulp and paper-contaminated wastewater and optimize lignin adsorption by Fe₃O₄ NPs. Water samples were collected from three paper and carton manufacturing companies, Alexandria Governorate, Egypt. Pseudomonas otitidis MCC10330, the most active and promising strain among 10 previously screened indigenous and exogenous isolates, was selected and decorated with magnetic Fe₃O₄ Nanoparticles, that were prepared by the co-precipitation method, characterized and used to decontaminate paper and pulp effluent in a batch mode bioassay for 4 h. Fe₃O₄ NPs/bacterial cell assembly achieved the highest removals (64.1, 52.0, 54.3 and 66.6%) of TSS, COD, BOD, and Total Tannin and Lignin after 1, 4 and 4 h, reaching residual concentrations (RCs) of 322, 216, 112 and 7 mg/L, which are still slightly higher (5.35, 2.7 and 1.86-fold) than their maximum permissible limits (MPLs), respectively. RCs of pH, DO and TDS in the treated effluent are accepted for safe discharging. Maximum lignin adsorption and removal (82.14%) using Fe₃O₄ NPs was achieved at the optimized conditions (pH 6, Fe₃O₄ NPs dosage of 100 mg and 10 min contact time). Results confirmed that the proposed magnetite-coated Pseudomonas otitidis treatment system is highly efficient and recommended to treat the highly contaminated pulp and paper wastewater. Also, as far as we know, this integrated assemblage is the first time to be used as a novel, very promising, eco-friendly, renewable and economical biotechnological approach to minimize/eliminate the involved pollutants with the least running time.