Insight into selective removal of copper from high-concentration nickel solutions with XPS and DFT: New technique to prepare 5N-nickel with chelating resin

An efficient and profitable separation process was proposed to prepare 5N(the purity of the metal solution reaches 99.999%) high-purity nickel from 3N nickel-solutions using Purolite S984. The adsorption performance of this superior resin, especially its selectivity for metal ions,was explored quantitatively. The maximum adsorption capacity for copper was 2.286 mmol/g calculated by the Langmuir model, which was twice as large as that for nickel. In the binary systems, the adsorption capacity for nickel was decreased by 45%, indicating direct competition for the active sites. The infinite separation factor for copper versus nickel exceeded 300, revealing the feasibility of preparing5N-level high-purity nickel solutions, which was further verified using the 800 BV(bed volume) effluent in the column dynamic process.According to the cost–benefit analysis, purification contributed to a profit of approximately 60,000 USD per cycle, and the investment return period was less than 1/3 years. Density functional theory analysis confirmed that four nitrogen atoms would be involved in the coordination complex and thus a structure involving two five-membered rings could be achieved. The X-ray photoelectron spectra confirmed the involvement of nitrogen atoms,implying a coordination ratio of approximately 1:1.     

Innovative method of culturing bdelloid rotifers for the application of wastewater biological treatment

• An innovative method of culturing bdelloid rotifer fed on flour was proposed. • Rotifer fed on flour grew faster than that fed on bacteria or Chlorella vulgaris. • The optimum mass culture conditions for rotifer fed on flour were investigated. • The cultured rotifer could improve sludge settleability in the SBR. This study aims to establish a simple and efficient method for the mass culture of bdelloid rotifers, which is the basis for the application of bdelloid rotifers as biological manipulators to improve wastewater biological treatment performance. A common bdelloid rotifer, Habrotrocha sp., in a wastewater biological treatment system was selected as the culture target. Rotifers fed on flour could reproduce faster than those fed traditional food such as Chlorella vulgaris or mixed bacteria. As a rotifer food, flour has the advantages of simple preparation, effortless preservation, and low cost compared to live Chlorella vulgaris or mixed bacteria, so it is more suitable for the mass culture of rotifers. The optimal rotifer culture conditions using flour as food were also studied. According to the experimental results, the recommended rotifer culture conditions are a flour particle size of 1 μm, a flour concentration of 6 × 10⁶ cell/mL, a temperature of 28℃, a pH level of 6.5 and salinity of 100–500 mg/L. In addition, the sludge volume index in the sequencing batch reactor (SBR) with the addition of cultured rotifers was 59.9 mL/g at the end of operation and decreased by 18.2% compared to SBR without rotifer, which indicates that the cultured rotifers still retained the function of helping to improve sludge settling. This function may be related to the rotifer’s role in inhibiting bacteria from producing loosely bound extracellular polymeric substances in the SBR.     

Collaborative influence of morphology tuning and RE (La,Y, and Sm) doping on photocatalytic performance of nanoceria

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Tuning morphology and doping additional rare earth (RE) cations are potential techniques to promote the photocatalytic performance of ceria (CeO2),...