Formaldehyde serves as a key intermediate in numerous industrial processes, leading to a steadily increasing global demand. Consequently, efficient methods for producing both clean hydrogen and water-free formaldehyde are of growing importance. However, a significant hurdle in catalysis remains the selection of materials that can enhance both stability and catalytic performance. So, in this article, we reported zirconium molybdate material (Z₁U₅ catalyst) as an active, stable, and selective catalyst for the conversion of methanol to formaldehyde. The catalysts were fabricated by hydrothermal method using various ratios of urea. Using TGA, DSC, XRD, FT-IR, SEM, HR-TEM, XPS, N₂ sorption analysis, and pyridine-TPD, the produced catalysts' structural, morphological, textural, and acidic properties have been analyzed. The catalyst with the highest performance was developed by optimizing several synthesis parameters, including the molar ratio of zirconium to urea, hydrothermal treatment temperature and duration, as well as the annealing temperature. Under the ideal conditions, the catalyst with a Zr:urea ratio of 1:5 (referred to as Z₁U₅) demonstrated the best activity, achieving a 98 % methanol conversion and 95 % selectivity toward formaldehyde at 300 °C. This outstanding catalytic behavior is ascribed to the presence of Brønsted acid sites of both weak and moderate strength on the catalyst surface. Moreover, the Z₁U₅ catalyst exhibited excellent long-term durability, maintaining consistent conversion and selectivity over a continuous 160 h operation.

CeO₂–Fe₂O₃ binary oxides were effectively incorporated into mesoporous spherical silica (MCM-41) via a sol–gel technique. The resultant CFO/MCM-41 nanocomposites, with metal loadings ranging from 3 to 30 wt%, were subsequently calcined at 550 °C and assessed as catalysts for the gas-phase dehydration of isobutyl alcohol. Structural and surface analyses using XRD, TG-DTA, ATR-FTIR, BET, TEM, EDX, XPS, and pyridine-adsorbed FTIR confirmed the formation of thermally stable, well-dispersed active phases, as well as the presence of both Lewis and Brønsted acid sites. The differences in catalytic activity among these nanocomposites were closely linked to variations in their acidity. Among all the catalysts, the 10 wt% CeFeO₃/MCM-41 sample demonstrated the best performance at 350 °C, achieving approximately 92 % isobutanol conversion, 100 % selectivity toward isobutylene, and a butene production rate of 45.10 mmol g⁻¹ h⁻¹ . The catalyst also showed excellent stability across five reuse cycles. The outstanding catalytic performance and stability were directly correlated with the material's enhanced structural integrity and optimized textural properties. Furthermore, XPS analysis revealed that the Ce^3 +/Ce⁴⁺ and Fe²⁺/Fe³⁺ redox states, modulated by Ce–Fe interactions, played a crucial role in tuning the catalyst’s acidity and catalytic performance.

It is aimed in this work to explore the possibility of using the reed stalks for the production of pulp suitable for papermaking. To attain this goal, chemical kraft pulping followed by a number of bleaching sequences was implemented. We bleached a reed kraft pulp using H₁H₂, D₀EOD₁ and ZEOD sequences (where H, D, EO and Z represent hypochlorite, chlorine-dioxide, alkaline extraction, and ozone respectively) to attain considerably good quality pulp that boosts the brightness and brings high mechanical strength. The elementary chlorine-free (ECF) light bleaching sequences (ZEOD) include an ozone stage which results in imparting a pulp quality to be better than the conventional ECF procedure (D₀EOD₁) and (H₁H₂). Furthermore, to determine the optical, physical, and mechanical properties of reed pulp and paper, the impact of filler retention regarding the properties of paper that incorporates fibers from nano-filler (CaCO₃) loading was investigated and compared with the conventional filler loading. The same amount of nano calcium carbonate additive helps impart optical and mechanical properties compared against the paper manufactured by conventional calcium carbonate.

The congo red dye, present in textile effluents, is extremely stable towards light, heat, microorganisms and poses serious toxicity issues due to presence of carcinogenic aromatic amines. Magnesium oxide nanoparticles (MgO-NPs) are effective in degrading azo dyes, due to their distinctive physicochemical and catalytic properties, antibacterial effects, and relatively low toxicity. In this study, production of MgO-NPs via a native bacterial isolate Shigella sp. SNT22, their entrapment into Ca-alginate beads, and the determination of their photocatalysis potential for congo red degradation and treating textile wastewater is documented. The UV–VIS spectroscopy confirmed the MgO-NPs by a signature peak at 270 nm. As revealed by FTIR analysis, different functional groups stabilized the MgO-NPs, and the average calculated size of MgO-NPs was 46.89–55.08 nm. The X-ray diffraction pattern revealed the synthesis of pure and crystalline MgO-NPs. The MgO-NPs showed minimal cytotoxic effects to retinal pigment epithelial cell line, maintaining over 90% cell survival even at high concentrations (up to 100 ppm). In an immobilized form with Ca-alginate, the MgO-NPs were able to remove 89.33% CR from aqueous dye solution at 2 mg/mL concentration of nanoparticles after 5h of solar exposure. Moreover, textile effluents treated with MgO-NPs beads reduced pH (24%), electrical conductivity (EC) 38%, total dissolved solids (TDS) 64%, and chemical oxygen demand (COD) 72% in effluents. Overall, the study revealed an ecofriendly and scalable approach of applying MgO-NPs in entrapped form for wastewater treatment to avoid NPs direct environmental release.

Pulses are essential crops but face challenges from abiotic and biotic stress, especially heavy metal stress, which significantly affects chickpea growth. The focus of the current research was to evaluate the effect of co-applied ZnO-NPs and Ni-resistant plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) for growth and development of chickpea while minimizing nickel stress. A pot experiment was conducted to check the phytotoxicity threshold of ZnO-NPs, with foliar application of ZnO-NPs at concentrations of 0, 25, 50, 75, and 100 mgL⁻¹, along with PGPR strains (Shewanella sp. and Bacillus flexus). The individual and combined effect of ZnO-NPs (100 mgL⁻¹) and PGPR (Shewanella sp.) was also checked against Ni stress in chickpea and an average reduction in Ni toxicity of up to 48.6% was detected, where antioxidants, photosynthetic, and growth parameters were increased in co-application of both the bio stimulants, while oxidants decreased significantly. The significant improvement was noticed by photosynthetic parameters such as chlorophyll a and b upto 35.8% and 38.09%. Root and shoot length were enhanced by 28.7% and 34.9% in the combined application in comparison to the control, respectively. It is concluded that biosynthesized ZnO-NPs and Shewanella sp. PGPR together could be optimal to treat Ni stress and to improve chickpea yield.

The Korang River is a significant water source, supporting varied aquatic ecosystems, and is vital for regional water supply and ecological balance. This study was conducted to assess the Korang River heavy metals (HMs) contamination, cancer and non-cancer risks, through health risk indices, and source apportionment. Eighty-three (83) surface water samples were analyzed via Atomic Absorption Spectrometer (AAS) for HMs concentration. The study sites are classified into three contamination zones through cluster analysis (CA) and self-organizing maps (SOM). In zone I, Ni (0.054 mg/L) exceeded the WHO permissible limit and is slightly contaminated. Zone II showed more contamination, with Fe (14.3 mg/L), Ni (0.136 mg/L), Cr (0.14 mg/L), and Cd (0.0123 mg/L) exceeding WHO permissible limits. Zone III was moderately contaminated, as Fe (4.98 mg/L) and Ni (0.063 mg/L) concentrations exceeded the permissible limits, and are less contaminated. The Hazard Index (HI) and Cancer Risks (CR) of Cr, Cd, and Ni were above the threshold level, showing both cancer and non-cancer health risks in adults and children. Through the Positive Matrix Factorization (PMF) model, four major sources of HMs were identified. These sources are industrial effluents (30.2 %), household waste (25.2 %), traffic emissions (24.4 %), and geological weathering (20.2 %). These findings highlight the urgent need for effective management of industrial effluents, traffic emissions, and household waste through solid measures. Although this study is site-specific, the approach can be applied in other areas having similar industrial and urban setup for better contamination management.

Soil microbes play an important role in nutrient cycling, and their richness and diversity are greatly influenced by cropping patterns and soil management systems. However, the effect of different cropping systems of rice on soil microorganism is still obscure. Therefore, this field experiment was conducted to study the effects of various paddy-upland multiple cropping rotation patterns on soil microbial community structure and diversity. The experiment comprised different treatments, Chinese milk vetch (Astragalus sinicus L.)-double cropping rice (CRR, CK), rape-early rice-late rice (RRR), potato (Solanum tuberosum L.)-early rice-late rice (PRR), Chinese milk vetch-early rice-sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas (L.) Lam.) late soybean (Glycine max (L.) Merr.) (CRI), and rape (Brassica napus L.)-early rice-sweet potato late soybean (RRI). The results showed that rapeseed and Chinese milk vetch in winter was conducive to increasing bacterial community richness and diversity. For each cropping pattern, the top three dominant phyla in paddy fields were Proteobacteria, Chloroflexi and Actinobacteria in terms of relative abundance. The community structure of soil bacteria showed more significant internal variability in CRI and RRI treatments and less internal variability in others treatments. Redundancy analysis of soil bacterial community structure and soil chemical properties revealed that soil bacterial community structure changes were primarily influenced by organic C, its fractions, and N content. In conclusion, Chinese milk vetch-early rice-sweet potato and late soybean cropping patterns may be considered for sustainable early and late rice production due to their beneficial impacts on soil bacterial abundance, diversity, and soil properties.