Search results for: environmental challenge

Authors: Farhood Rismanchian, Seong Hyeon Park, Young Hoon Lee

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This paper proposes a method to optimize the layout of an emergency department (ED) based on real executions of care processes by considering several planning objectives simultaneously. Recently, demand for healthcare services has been dramatically increased. As the demand for healthcare services increases, so do the need for new healthcare buildings as well as the need for redesign and renovating existing ones. The importance of implementation of a standard set of engineering facilities planning and design techniques has been already proved in both manufacturing and service industry with many significant functional efficiencies. However, high complexity of care processes remains a major challenge to apply these methods in healthcare environments. Process mining techniques applied in this study to tackle the problem of complexity and to enhance care process analysis. Process related information such as clinical pathways extracted from the information system of an ED. A 0-1 goal programming approach is then proposed to find a single layout that simultaneously satisfies several goals. The proposed model solved by optimization software CPLEX 12. The solution reached using the proposed method has 42.2% improvement in terms of walking distance of normal patients and 47.6% improvement in walking distance of critical patients at minimum cost of relocation. It has been observed that lots of patients must unnecessarily walk long distances during their visit to the emergency department because of an inefficient design. A carefully designed layout can significantly decrease patient walking distance and related complications.

Keywords: healthcare operation management, goal programming, facility layout problem, process mining, clinical processes

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Authors: Hafiz Husnain Nawaz

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Anthracnose disease in olive, caused by the fungal pathogen Colletotrichum acutatum, is considered one of the most critical issues in olive orchards in Pakistan. This disease poses a significant threat as it results in infections that can lead to the complete damage of olive plants, affecting leaves, stems, and fruits in the field. Controlling this disease is particularly challenging due to the absence of an effective fungicide that does not pose risks to farmer health and the environment. To address this challenge, our study aimed to evaluate the antagonistic activity of a biosurfactant produced by the Bacillus subtilis PE-07 strain against the anthracnose-causing agent in olive plants. This strain was selected after screening sixty rhizobacteria strains. Additionally, we assessed the heat stability, pH range, and toxicity of the biosurfactant produced by strain PE-07. Our results revealed that the biosurfactant exhibited maximum antifungal activity against C. acutatum. In vitro studies indicated that the biosurfactant could reduce fungal activity by inhibiting the spore germination of C. acutatum. Furthermore, the biosurfactant demonstrated a wide pH and temperature range, displaying antifungal activity at pH levels ranging from 5 to 10 and a temperature range from room temperature to 110°C. To evaluate the biosurfactant's safety, we conducted toxicity tests on zebra fish (Danio rerio). The results showed that the biosurfactant had minimal harmful effects, even at maximum concentrations. In conclusion, our study confirmed that the biosurfactant produced by B. subtilis exhibited high pH and heat stability with minimal harmful effects. Therefore, it presents a promising alternative to chemical pesticides for effectively controlling olive anthracnose in Pakistan.

Keywords: biological control, heat stability and PH range, toxicity, Danio rerio

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Authors: M. Pushparani, A. Sagaya

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Embedded systems have emerged as important elements in various domains with extensive applications in automotive, commercial, consumer, healthcare and transportation markets, as there is emphasis on intelligent devices. On the other hand, Business Intelligence (BI) has also been extensively used in a range of applications, especially in the agriculture domain which is the area of this research. The aim of this research is to create a framework for Embedded Weight Comparison Algorithm with Business Intelligence (EWCA-BI). The weight comparison algorithm will be embedded within the plantation management system and the weighbridge system. This algorithm will be used to estimate the weight at the site and will be compared with the actual weight at the plantation. The algorithm will be used to build the necessary alerts when there is a discrepancy in the weight, thus enabling better decision making. In the current practice, data are collected from various locations in various forms. It is a challenge to consolidate data to obtain timely and accurate information for effective decision making. Adding to this, the unstable network connection leads to difficulty in getting timely accurate information. To overcome the challenges embedding is done on a portable device that will have the embedded weight comparison algorithm to also assist in data capture and synchronize data at various locations overcoming the network short comings at collection points. The EWCA-BI will provide real-time information at any given point of time, thus enabling non-latent BI reports that will provide crucial information to enable efficient operational decision making. This research has a high potential in bringing embedded system into the agriculture industry. EWCA-BI will provide BI reports with accurate information with uncompromised data using an embedded system and provide alerts, therefore, enabling effective operation management decision-making at the site.

Keywords: embedded business intelligence, weight comparison algorithm, oil palm plantation, embedded systems

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Authors: Crysovaladou Kefaloudi, Kassiani Mellou, Eirini Saranti-Papasaranti, Athanasios Koustenis, Chrysoula Botsi, Agapios Terzidis

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Recent migration crisis led to a vast migrant – refugees movement to Greece which created an urgent need for hosting settlements. Taken into account the protection of public health from possible pathogens related to water and food supply as well as waste and sewage accumulation, a 'Living Conditions Recording Form' was created in the context of 'PHILOS' European Program funded by the Asylum Migration and Integration Fund (AMIF) of EU’s DG Migration and Home Affairs, in order to assess a number of environmental sanitation parameters, in refugees – migrants camps in mainland. The assessment will be completed until the end of July. From March to June 2017, mobile unit teams comprised of health inspectors of sub-action 2 of “PHILOS” proceeded with the assessment of living conditions in twenty-two out of thirty-one camps and 'Stata' was used for the statistical analysis of obtained information. Variables were grouped into the following categories: 1) Camp administration, 2) hosted population number, 3) accommodation, 4) heating installations, 5) personal hygiene, 6) sewage collection and disposal, 7) water supply, 8) waste collection and management, 9) pest control, 10) fire safety, 11) food handling and safety. Preliminary analysis of the results showed that camp administration was performed in 90% of the camps by a public authority with the coordination of various NGOs. The median number of hosted population was 222 ranging from 62 to 3200, and the median value of hosted population per accommodation type was 4 in 19 camps. Heating facilities were provided in 86.1% of camps. In 18.2 % of the camps, one personal hygiene facility was available per 6 people ranging in the rest of the camps from 1 per 3 to 1 per 20 hosted refugees-migrants. Waste and sewage collection was performed depending on populations demand in an adequate way in all recorded camps. In 90% of camps, water was supplied through the central water supply system. In 85% of camps quantity and quality of water supply inside camps was regularly monitored for microbial and chemical indices. Pest control was implemented in 86.4% of the camps as well as fire safety measures. Food was supplied by catering companies in 50% of the camps, and the quality and quantity food was monitored at a regular basis. In 77% of camps, food was prepared by the hosted population with the availability of proper storage conditions. Furthermore, in all camps, hosted population was provided with personal hygiene items and health sanitary educational programs were implemented in 77.3% of camps. In conclusion, in the majority of the camps, environmental sanitation parameters were satisfactory. However, waste and sewage accumulation, as well as inadequate pest control measures were recorded in some camps. The obtained data have led to a number of recommendations for the improvement of sanitary conditions, disseminated to all relevant stakeholders. Special emphasis was given to hygiene measures implementation during food handling by migrants – refugees, as well as to waste and sewage accumulation taking in to account the population’s cultural background.

Keywords: environmental sanitation parameters, food borne diseases risk assessment, refugee – migrants camps, water borne diseases risk assessment

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Authors: Maydariana Ayuningtyas, Bambang Riyanto, Akhiruddin Maddu

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Industrial waste of crustacean shells, such as shrimp and crab, has been considered as one of the major issues contributing to environmental pollution. The waste processing mechanisms to form new, practical substances with added value have been developed. Chitosan, a derived matter from chitin, which is obtained from crab and shrimp shells, performs prodigiously in broad range applications. A chitosan composite-based diaphragm is a new inspiration in fiber optic acoustic sensor advancement. Elastic modulus, dynamic response, and sensitivity to acoustic wave of chitosan-based composite film contribute great potentials of organic-based sound-detecting material. The objective of this research was to develop chitosan diaphragm application in fiber optic microphone system. The formulation was conducted by blending 5% polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) solution with dissolved chitosan at 0%, 1% and 2% in 1:1 ratio, respectively. Composite diaphragms were characterized for the morphological and mechanical properties to predict the desired acoustic sensor sensitivity. The composite with 2% chitosan indicated optimum performance with 242.55 µm thickness, 67.9% relative humidity, and 29-76% light transmittance. The Young’s modulus of 2%-chitosan composite material was 4.89×104 N/m2, which generated the voltage amplitude of 0.013V and performed sensitivity of 3.28 mV/Pa at 1 kHz. Based on the results above, chitosan from crustacean shell waste can be considered as a viable alternative material for fiber optic acoustic sensor sensing pad development. Further, the research in chitosan utilisation is proposed as novel optical microphone development in anthropogenic noise controlling effort for environmental and biodiversity conservation.

Keywords: acoustic sensor, chitosan, composite, crab shell, diaphragm, waste utilisation

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Authors: Sijing Xiong, Ran Su, Lit-Hsin Loo, Daniele Zink

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The kidney is a major target for toxic effects of drugs, industrial and environmental chemicals and other compounds. Typically, nephrotoxicity is detected late during drug development, and regulatory animal models could not solve this problem. Validated or accepted in silico or in vitro methods for the prediction of nephrotoxicity are not available. We have established the first and currently only pre-validated in vitro models for the accurate prediction of nephrotoxicity in humans and the first predictive platforms based on renal cells derived from human pluripotent stem cells. In order to further improve the efficiency of our predictive models, we recently developed a high content screening (HCS) platform. This platform employed automated imaging in combination with automated quantitative phenotypic profiling and machine learning methods. 129 image-based phenotypic features were analyzed with respect to their predictive performance in combination with 44 compounds with different chemical structures that included drugs, environmental and industrial chemicals and herbal and fungal compounds. The nephrotoxicity of these compounds in humans is well characterized. A combination of chromatin and cytoskeletal features resulted in high predictivity with respect to nephrotoxicity in humans. Test balanced accuracies of 82% or 89% were obtained with human primary or immortalized renal proximal tubular cells, respectively. Furthermore, our results revealed that a DNA damage response is commonly induced by different PTC-toxicants with diverse chemical structures and injury mechanisms. Together, the results show that the automated HCS platform allows efficient and accurate nephrotoxicity prediction for compounds with diverse chemical structures.

Keywords: high content screening, in vitro models, nephrotoxicity, toxicity prediction

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Authors: M. Shaheed Hartley

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Science and mathematics are regarded as gateway subjects in South Africa as they are the perceived route to careers in science, engineering, technology and mathematics (STEM). One of the biggest challenges that the country faces is the poor achievement of learners in these two learning areas in the external high school exit examination. To compound the problem many national and international benchmark tests paint a bleak picture of the state of science and mathematics in the country. In an attempt to address this challenge, the education department of the Eastern Cape Province invited the Science Learning Centre of the University of the Western Cape to provide training to their science teachers in the form of a structured course conducted on a part-time basis in 2010 and 2011. The course was directed at improving teachers’ content knowledge, pedagogical strategies and practical and experimental skills. A total of 41 of the original 50 science teachers completed the course and received their certificates in 2012. As part of their continuous professional development, 31 science teachers enrolled for BEd Hons in science education in 2013 and 28 of them completed the course in 2014. These students graduated in 2015. Of the 28 BEd Hons students who completed the course 23 registered in 2015 for Masters in Science Education and were joined by an additional 3 students. This paper provides a reflection by science educators on the training, supervision and mentorship provided to them as students of science education. The growth and development of students through their own reflection and understanding as well as through the eyes of the lecturers and supervisors that took part in the training provide the evaluation of the professional development process over the past few years. This study attempts to identify the merits, challenges and limitations of this project and the lessons to be learnt on such projects. It also documents some of the useful performance indicators with a view to developing a framework for good practice for such programmes.

Keywords: reflection, science education, professional development, rural schools

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Authors: Ghada Esheba, Ghadeer Aldoobi, Salwa Almalk, Abrar Alshareef, Eman Al-khairi, Eman Yaseen

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Background: In Saudi Arabia, ovarian cancer ranked seventh among female population and is the most common female genital tract malignancy after endometrial cancer. A slight increase in the incidence of ovarian cancer was observed from 2001–2008. Makkah, Riyadh, and the eastern region of Saudi Arabia had the highest incidence rate ratio for the number of ovarian cancer cases (1). Differentiating metastatic adenocarcinomas from primary ovarian carcinomas, especially those of endometrioid and mucinous type is clinically significant and a challenge for clinicians and pathologists, yet the distinction has important therapeutic and prognostic implications. Aim: To clarify the most important histopathological criteria to differentiate between primary ovarian surface epithelial tumors especially mucinous and endometrioid subtypes, and metastatic adenocarcinoma and to evaluate the value of a panel of antibodies consisting of CK7, CK20, and CDX-2 in the distinction between primary ovarian surface epithelial tumors and metastatic adenocarcinoma. Material and methods: This study was carried out on 26 cases of primary ovarian surface epithelial neoplasms and 14 cases of metastatic ovarian adenocarcinoma. All cases were studied immunohistochemically using CK7, CK20, and CDX-2. Results: All cases of primary ovarian adenocarcinoma were positive for CK7. 25% and 58% of mucinous borderline mucinous tumor and mucinous carcinoma respectively were positive for CK20. Only 42% of mucinous carcinoma were positive for CDX-2. All cases of endometrioid carcinomas were negative for both CK20 and CDX-2. All cases of metastatic adenocarcinoma from the colon were negative for CK7 and positive for CK20 and CDX-2. Conclusions: CK7 is an important positive marker for primary ovarian tumors, while CK20 and CDX-2 are useful markers for colorectal carcinoma metastatic to the ovary. Caution should be taken as primary ovarian mucinous tumors may stain positive for CK20, CDX-2, or both, however, they usually exhibit a focal pattern of reactivity.

Keywords: adenoma, endometrioid, malignancy, ovarian

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Authors: Manju Kanu, Subrata Sinha, Surabhi Johari

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Viral proteins of Ebola viruses belong to one of the best studied viruses; however no effective prevention against EBOV has been developed. Epitope-based vaccines provide a new strategy for prophylactic and therapeutic application of pathogen-specific immunity. A critical requirement of this strategy is the identification and selection of T-cell epitopes that act as vaccine targets. This study describes current methodologies for the selection process, with Ebola virus as a model system. Hence great challenge in the field of ebola virus research is to design universal vaccine. A combination of publicly available bioinformatics algorithms and computational tools are used to screen and select antigen sequences as potential T-cell epitopes of supertypes Human Leukocyte Antigen (HLA) alleles. MUSCLE and MOTIF tools were used to find out most conserved peptide sequences of viral proteins. Immunoinformatics tools were used for prediction of immunogenic peptides of viral proteins in zaire strains of Ebola virus. Putative epitopes for viral proteins (VP) were predicted from conserved peptide sequences of VP. Three tools NetCTL 1.2, BIMAS and Syfpeithi were used to predict the Class I putative epitopes while three tools, ProPred, IEDB-SMM-align and NetMHCII 2.2 were used to predict the Class II putative epitopes. B cell epitopes were predicted by BCPREDS 1.0. Immunogenic peptides were identified and selected manually by putative epitopes predicted from online tools individually for both MHC classes. Finally sequences of predicted peptides for both MHC classes were looked for common region which was selected as common immunogenic peptide. The immunogenic peptides were found for viral proteins of Ebola virus: epitopes FLESGAVKY, SSLAKHGEY. These predicted peptides could be promising candidates to be used as target for vaccine design.

Keywords: epitope, b cell, immunogenicity, ebola

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Authors: Falntina Ahmad Alata, Natheer Abu Obeid

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This paper is a research report of an experimental study on a proposed typology system to diagnose and evaluate the affordances of varying architectural environments. The study focused on architectural environments which have been developed with a shift in their use of adaptive reuse. The novelty in the newly developed environments was tested in terms of human responsiveness and interaction using a variety of selected cases. The study is a follow-up on previous research by the same authors, in which a typology of 16 categories of environmental affordances was developed and introduced. The current study introduced other new categories, which together with the previous ones establish what could be considered a basic language of affordance typology. The experiment was conducted on ten architectural environments while adopting two processes: 1. Diagnostic process, in which the environments were interpreted in terms of their affordances using the previously developed affordance typology, 2. The evaluation process, in which the diagnosed environments were evaluated using measures of emotional experience and architectural evaluation criteria of beauty, economy and function. The experimental study demonstrated that the typology system was capable of diagnosing different environments in terms of their affordances. It also introduced new categories of human interaction: “multiple affordances,” “conflict affordances,” and “mix affordances.” The different possible combinations and mixtures of categories demonstrated to be capable of producing huge numbers of other newly developed categories. This research is an attempt to draw a roadmap for designers to diagnose and evaluate the affordances within different architectural environments. It is hoped to provide future guidance for developing the best possible adaptive reuse according to the best affordance category within their proposed designs.

Keywords: affordance theory, affordance categories, architectural environments, architectural evaluation criteria, adaptive reuse environment, emotional experience, shift in use environment

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Authors: Erica Cochran Hameen, Bobuchi Ken-Opurum, Mounica Guturu

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The United Stated (U.S.) populous spends the majority of their time indoors in spaces where building codes and voluntary sustainability standards provide clear Indoor Environmental Quality (IEQ) metrics. The existing sustainable building standards and codes are aimed towards improving IEQ, health of occupants, and reducing the negative impacts of buildings on the environment. While they address the post-occupancy stage of buildings, there are fewer standards on the pre-occupancy stage thereby placing a large labor population in environments much less regulated. Construction personnel are often exposed to a variety of uncomfortable and unhealthy elements while on construction sites, primarily thermal, visual, acoustic, and air quality related. Construction site power generators, equipment, and machinery generate on average 9 decibels (dBA) above the U.S. OSHA regulations, creating uncomfortable noise levels. Research has shown that frequent exposure to high noise levels leads to chronic physiological issues and increases noise induced stress, yet beyond OSHA no other metric focuses directly on the impacts of noise on contractors’ well-being. Research has also associated natural light with higher productivity and attention span, and lower cases of fatigue in construction workers. However, daylight is not always available as construction workers often perform tasks in cramped spaces, dark areas, or at nighttime. In these instances, the use of artificial light is necessary, yet lighting standards for use during lengthy tasks and arduous activities is not specified. Additionally, ambient air, contaminants, and material off-gassing expelled at construction sites are one of the causes of serious health effects in construction workers. Coupled with extreme hot and cold temperatures for different climate zones, health and productivity can be seriously compromised. This research evaluates the impact of existing green building metrics on construction and risk management, by analyzing two codes and nine standards including LEED, WELL, and BREAM. These metrics were chosen based on the relevance to the U.S. construction industry. This research determined that less than 20% of the sustainability context within the standards and codes (texts) are related to the pre-occupancy building sector. The research also investigated the impact of construction personnel’s health and well-being on construction management through two surveys of project managers and on-site contractors’ perception of their work environment on productivity. To fully understand the risks of limited Environmental and Health Quality metrics for contractors (EHQ) this research evaluated the connection between EHQ factors such as inefficient lighting, on construction workers and investigated the correlation between various site coping strategies for comfort and productivity. Outcomes from this research are three-pronged. The first includes fostering a discussion about the existing conditions of EQH elements, i.e. thermal, lighting, ergonomic, acoustic, and air quality on the construction labor force. The second identifies gaps in sustainability standards and codes during the pre-occupancy stage of building construction from ground-breaking to substantial completion. The third identifies opportunities for improvements and mitigation strategies to improve EQH such as increased monitoring of effects on productivity and health of contractors and increased inclusion of the pre-occupancy stage in green building standards.

Keywords: construction contractors, health and well-being, environmental quality, risk management

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Authors: Milton Manyangadze, Joseph Govha, T. Bala Narsaiah, Ch. Shilpa Chakra

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The availability and access to fresh water is today a serious global challenge. This has been a direct result of factors such as the current rapid industrialization and industrial growth, persistent droughts in some parts of the world, especially in the sub-Saharan Africa as well as population growth. Growth of the chemical processing industry has also seen an increase in the levels of pollutants in our water bodies which include heavy metals among others. Heavy metals are known to be dangerous to both human and aquatic life. As such, they have been linked to several diseases. This is mainly because they are highly toxic. They are also known to be bio accumulative and non-biodegradable. Lead for example, has been linked to a number of health problems which include damage of vital internal body systems like the nervous and reproductive system as well as the kidneys. From this background therefore, the removal of the toxic heavy metal, Pb2+ from waste water was investigated using nano silica hollow spheres (NSHS) as the adsorbent. Synthesis of NSHS was done using a three-stage process in which CaCO3 nanoparticles were initially prepared as a template. This was followed by treatment of the formed oxide particles with NaSiO3 to give a nanocomposite. Finally, the template was destroyed using 2.0M HCl to give NSHS. Characterization of the nanoparticles was done using analytical techniques like XRD, SEM, and TGA. For the adsorption process, both thermodynamic and equilibrium studies were carried out. Thermodynamic studies were carried out and the Gibbs free energy, Enthalpy and Entropy of the adsorption process were determined. The results revealed that the adsorption process was both endothermic and spontaneous. Equilibrium studies were also carried out in which the Langmuir and Freundlich isotherms were tested. The results showed that the Langmuir model best described the adsorption equilibrium.

Keywords: characterization, endothermic, equilibrium studies, Freundlich, Langmuir, nanoparticles, thermodynamic studies

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Authors: Parvaneh Eskandari, Rachel O'Reilly

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In the last years, controlling the self-assembly behavior of stimuli-responsive nano-objects, including micelles, vesicles, worm-like, etc., at different conditions is considered a pertinent challenge in the polymer community. The aim of the project was to synthesize aggregation-induced emission (AIE)-active stimuli-responsive polymeric nano-objects to control the self-assemblies morphologies of the prepared nano-objects. Two types of nanoobjects, micelle and vesicles, including PDMAEMA-b-P(BzMA-TPEMA) [PDMAEMA: poly(N,Ndimethylaminoethyl methacrylate); P(BzMA-TPEMA): poly[benzyl methacrylate-co- tetraphenylethene methacrylate]] were synthesized by using reversible addition−fragmentation chain-transfer (RAFT)- mediated polymerization-induced self-assembly (PISA), which combines polymerization and self-assembly in a single step. Transmission electron microscope and dynamic light scattering (DLS) analysis were used to confirm the formed self-assemblies morphologies. The controlled self-assemblies were applied as nitrophenolic compounds (NPCs) adsorbents from wastewater, thanks to their CO2-responsive part, PDMAEMA. Moreover, the fluorescence-active part of the prepared nano-objects, P(BzMA-TPEMA), played a key role in the detection of the NPCs at the aqueous solution. The optical properties of the prepared nano-objects were studied by UV/Vis and fluorescence spectroscopies. For responsivity investigations, the hydrodynamic diameter and Zeta-potential (ζ-potential) of the sample's aqueous solution were measured by DLS. In the end, the prepared nano-objects were used for the detection and adsorption of different NPCs.

Keywords: aggregation-induced emission polymers, stimuli-responsive polymers, reversible addition−fragmentation chain-transfer polymerization, polymerization-induced self-assembly, wastewater treatment

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Authors: Marcello De Falco, Gianluca Natrella, Mauro Capocelli

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CO₂ capture and utilization (CCU) is a promising approach to reduce GHG(greenhouse gas) emissions. Many technologies in this field are recently attracting attention. However, since CO₂ is a very stable compound, its utilization as a reagent is energetic intensive. As a consequence, it is unclear whether CCU processes allow for a net reduction of environmental impacts from a life cycle perspective and whether these solutions are sustainable. Among the tools to apply for the quantification of the real environmental benefits of CCU technologies, exergy analysis is the most rigorous from a scientific point of view. The exergy of a system is the maximum obtainable work during a process that brings the system into equilibrium with its reference environment through a series of reversible processes in which the system can only interact with such an environment. In other words, exergy is an “opportunity for doing work” and, in real processes, it is destroyed by entropy generation. The exergy-based analysis is useful to evaluate the thermodynamic inefficiencies of processes, to understand and locate the main consumption of fuels or primary energy, to provide an instrument for comparison among different process configurations and to detect solutions to reduce the energy penalties of a process. In this work, the exergy analysis of a process for the production of Dimethyl Ether (DME) from green hydrogen generated through an electrolysis unit and pure CO₂ captured from flue gas is performed. The model simulates the behavior of all units composing the plant (electrolyzer, carbon capture section, DME synthesis reactor, purification step), with the scope to quantify the performance indices based on the II Law of Thermodynamics and to identify the entropy generation points. Then, a plant optimization strategy is proposed to maximize the exergy efficiency.

Keywords: green DME production, exergy analysis, energy penalties, exergy efficiency

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Authors: Samira Eskandari

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The image of Tehran has been impacted in recent years due to poor urban management and fragmented governance. There is no cohesive urban beautification framework in Tehran to enforce builders take aesthetic factors seriously when design and construct new buildings. The existing guidelines merely provide people with recommendations, not regulations. Obviously, Tehran needs a more comprehensive and strict urban beautification framework to restore its image. The damaged image has impacted the city’s social, economic and environmental growth. This research aims to find and examine a solution by which the employment of urban beautification regulation would be guaranteed, and city image would be organized. The methodology is based on a qualitative approach associated with analytical methods, in-depth surveys and interviews with Tehran citizens, authorities and experts, and use of academic resources as well as simulation. As a result, one practical solution is to incorporate aesthetic guidelines into a survival-related framework like a seismic guideline. Tehran is a seismic site, and all the buildings in Tehran have to be retrofitted against earthquake during construction. Hence, by integrating seismic regulations and aesthetic disciplines, urban beautification will be somehow guaranteed. Besides, the seismic image can turn into Tehran’s brand and enhances city identity. This research is trying to increase the social, environmental, and economic interconnectedness between urban planning and seismic planning by the usage of landscape architecture methods. As a case study, the potential outcomes are simulated in Tajrish, a suburb located in the north of Tehran. The result is that, by the redefinition of the morphology of seismic retrofitting systems, used in the significant city image elements, and re-function them in accordance with the Iranian culture and traditions, the city image would become more harmonized and legible.

Keywords: earthquake, retrofitting systems, Tehran image, urban beautification

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Authors: Rommila Chandra, Harshika Choudhary

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The value of integrated, participatory, and community based sustainable development strategies is eminent, but in practice, it still remains fragmentary and often leads to short-lived results. Despite the global presence of climate change, its impacts are felt differently by different communities based on their vulnerability. The developing countries have the low adaptive capacity and high dependence on environmental variables, making them highly susceptible to outmigration and poverty. We need to understand how to enable these approaches, taking into account the various governmental and non-governmental stakeholders functioning at different levels, to deliver long-term socio-economic and environmental well-being of local communities. The research assessed the financial and natural vulnerability of Himalayan networks, focusing on their potential to adapt to various changes, through accessing their perceived reactions and local knowledge. The evaluation was conducted by testing indices for vulnerability, with a major focus on indicators for adaptive capacity. Data for the analysis were collected from the villages around Govind National Park and Wildlife Sanctuary, located in the Indian Himalayan Region. The villages were stratified on the basis of connectivity via road, thus giving two kinds of human settlements connected and isolated. The study focused on understanding the complex relationship between outmigration and the socio-cultural sentiments of local people to not abandon their land, assessing their adaptive capacity for livelihood opportunities, and exploring their contribution that integrated participatory methodologies can play in delivering sustainable development. The result showed that the villages having better road connectivity, access to market, and basic amenities like health and education have a better understanding about the climatic shift, natural hazards, and a higher adaptive capacity for income generation in comparison to the isolated settlements in the hills. The participatory approach towards environmental conservation and sustainable use of natural resources were seen more towards the far-flung villages. The study helped to reduce the gap between local understanding and government policies by highlighting the ongoing adaptive practices and suggesting precautionary strategies for the community studied based on their local conditions, which differ on the basis of connectivity and state of development. Adaptive capacity in this study has been taken as the externally driven potential of different parameters, leading to a decrease in outmigration and upliftment of the human environment that could lead to sustainable livelihood development in the rural areas of Himalayas.

Keywords: adaptive capacity, Indian Himalayan region, participatory, sustainable livelihood development

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Authors: Mohammed Belalia Douma

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Interactive learning is considered as the most effective strategy of learning, it is an educational philosophy based on the learner's contribution and involvement mainly in classroom and how he interacts toward his small society “classroom”, and the level of his collaboration into challenge, discovering, games, participation, all these can be provided through the interactive learning, which aims to activate the learner's role in the operation of learning, which focuses on research and experimentation, and the learner's self-reliance in obtaining information, acquiring skills, and forming values and attitudes. Whereas not based on memorization only, but rather on developing thinking and the ability to solve problems, on teamwork and collaborative learning. With the exchange or roles - teacher to student- , when the student will be more active and performing operations more than the student under the interactive learning method; we might face a several issues dealing with class controlling management, noise, and stability of learning… etc. This research paper is observing the application of the interactive learning on reality “classroom” and answers several assumptions and analyzes the issues coming up of these strategies mainly: noise, class control…etc The research sample was about 150 student of the 3rd year primary school in “Chlef” district, Algeria, level: beginners in the range of age 08 to 10 years old . We provided a questionnaire of confidential fifteen questions and also analyzing the attitudes of learners during three months. it have witnessed as teachers a variety of strategies dealing with applying the interactive learning but with a different issues; time management, noise, uncontrolled classes, overcrowded classes. Finally, it summed up that although the active education is an inevitably effective method of teaching, however, there are drawbacks to this, in addition to the fact that not all theoretical strategies can be applied and we conclude with solutions of this case study.

Keywords: interactive learning, student, learners, strategies.

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Authors: Saba Baienat, Ivanka Iordanova, Bechara Helal

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Incorporating the principles of Design for Adaptability (DfAd) and Circular Economy (CE) into the service life planning of buildings and construction engineering projects can significantly enhance sustainable development. By employing DfAd, both the service life and design process can be optimized, gradually postponing the building’s End of Life (EoL) and extending the service life of buildings, thereby closing material cycles and making them more circular. This paper presents a comprehensive framework that addresses adaptability strategies and considerations to objectively assess the role of DfAd in circularity. The framework aims to provide a streamlined approach for accessing DfAd strategies and identifying the most effective ones for enhancing a project's adaptability. Key strategies include anticipating changes in requirements, enabling adaptations and transformations of the building for better use and reuse, preparing for future lives of the building and its components, and contributing to the circular material life cycle. Furthermore, the framework seeks to enhance the awareness of stakeholders about the subject of Design for Adaptability through the lens of the Circular Economy. Additionally, this paper integrates Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) methodologies to evaluate the environmental impacts of implementing DfAd strategies within the context of the Circular Economy. By utilizing LCA, the framework provides a quantitative basis for assessing the sustainability benefits of adaptable building designs, offering insights into how these strategies can minimize resource consumption, reduce emissions, and enhance overall environmental performance. This holistic approach underscores the critical role of LCA in bridging DfAd and CE, ultimately fostering more resilient and sustainable construction practices.

Keywords: circular economy (CE), design for adaptability (DfAd), life cycle assessment (LCA), sustainable development

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Authors: Adrian Lo

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Since the beginning of modern architecture, ideas of free plan and transparency have proliferated well into current trends of building design, from houses to highrise office buildings. The movement’s notion of a spatially homogeneous, open, and limitless ‘free plan’ stands opposite to the spatially heterogeneous ‘separation of rooms’ defined by load-bearing walls, which in turn triggered new notions of transparency achieved by vast expanses of glazed walls. Similarly, transparency was also dichotomized as something that was physical or optical, as well as something conceptual, akin to spatial organization. As opposed to merely accepting the duality and possible incompatibility of these dichotomies, this paper seeks to ask how can space be both literally and phenomenally transparent, as well as display both homogeneous and heterogeneous qualities? This paper explores this potential destabilization or blurring of spatial phenomena by dissecting the transparent layers and volumes of a series of selected case studies to investigate how different architects have devised strategies of spatial ambivalence, ambiguity, and interpenetration. Projects by Peter Eisenman, Sou Fujimoto, and SANAA will be discussed and analyzed to show how the superimposition of geometries and spaces achieve different conditions of layering, transparency, and interstitiality. Their particular buildings will be explored to reveal various innovative kinds of spatial interpenetration produced through the articulate relations of the elements of architecture, which challenge conventional perceptions of interior and exterior whereby visual homogeneity blurs with spatial heterogeneity. The results show how spatial conceptions such as interpenetration and transparency have the ability to subvert not only inside-outside dialectics but could also produce multiple degrees of interiority within complex and indeterminate spatial dimensions in constant flux as well as present alternative forms of social interaction.

Keywords: interpenetration, literal and phenomenal transparency, spatial heterogeneity, visual homogeneity

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Authors: Muhammed Ashiq Villanthenkodath, Shreya Pal

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Purpose: This study scrutinizes the impact of economic globalization on ecological footprint while endogenizing economic growth and energy consumption from 1990 to 2018 in India. Design/methodology/approach: The standard unit root test has been employed for time series analysis to unveil the integration order. Then, the cointegration was confirmed using autoregressive distributed lag (ARDL) analysis. Further, the study executed the dynamic ARDL simulation model to estimate long-run and short-run results along with simulation and robotic prediction. Findings: The cointegration analysis confirms the existence of a long-run association among variables. Further, economic globalization reduces the ecological footprint in the long run. Similarly, energy consumption decreases the ecological footprint. In contrast, economic growth spurs the ecological footprint in India. Originality/value: This study contributes to the literature in many ways. First, unlike studies that employ CO2 emissions and globalization nexus, this study employs ecological footprint for measuring environmental quality; since it is the broader measure of environmental quality, it can offer a wide range of climate change mitigation policies for India. Second, the study executes a multivariate framework with updated series from 1990 to 2018 in India to explore the link between EF, economic globalization, energy consumption, and economic growth. Third, the dynamic autoregressive distributed lag (ARDL) model has been used to explore the short and long-run association between the series. Finally, to our limited knowledge, this is the first study that uses economic globalization in the EF function of India amid facing a trade-off between sustainable economic growth and the environment in the era of globalization.

Keywords: economic globalization, ecological footprint, India, dynamic ARDL simulation model

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Authors: Elisabeth Pedersen

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Representations and interpretations of womanhood and female sexualities bring forth various questions regarding gender norms, and the implications of these norms, which are permeating and repetitive within various societies. Literature is one form of media which provides the space to represent and interpret women, their bodies, and sexualities, and also reveals the power of language as an affective and affected force. As literature allows an opportunity to explore history and the representations of gender, power dynamics, and sexuality through historical contexts, this paper uses engaged theory through a comparative analysis of two work of literature, The Duchess of Malfi by John Wester, and The Sound and the Fury by William Faulkner. These novels span across space and time, which lends to the theory that repetitive tropes of womanhood and female sexuality in literature are influenced by and have an influence on the hegemonic social order throughout history. It analyzes how the representation of the dichotomy of male chivalry and honor, and female purity are disputed and questioned when a woman is portrayed as sexually emancipated, and explores the historical context in which these works were written to examine how socioeconomic events challenged the hegemonic social order. The analysis looks at how stereotypical ideals of womanhood and manhood have damaging implications on women, as the structure of society provides more privilege and power to men than to women, thus creating a double standard for men and women in regards to sexuality, sexual expression, and rights to sexual desire. This comparative analysis reveals how strict gender norms are permeating and have negative consequences. However, re-reading stories through a critical lens can provide an opportunity to challenge the repetitive tropes of female sexuality, and thus lead to the embrace of the complexity of female sexuality and expression.

Keywords: femininity, literature, representation, sexuality

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Authors: Thomas Schalow

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This paper posits the need to take a cross-cultural approach to communication with non-human cultures and intelligences in order to meet the following three imminent contingencies: communicating with sentient biological intelligences, communicating with extraterrestrial intelligences, and communicating with artificial super-intelligences. The paper begins with a discussion of how intelligence emerges. It disputes some common assumptions we maintain about consciousness, intention, and language. The paper next explores cross-cultural communication among humans, including non-sapiens species. The next argument made is that we need to become much more serious about communicating with the non-human, intelligent life forms that already exist around us here on Earth. There is an urgent need to broaden our definition of communication and reach out to the other sentient life forms that inhabit our world. The paper next examines the science and philosophy behind CETI (communication with extraterrestrial intelligences) and how it has proven useful, even in the absence of contact with alien life. However, CETI’s assumptions and methodology need to be revised and based on the cross-cultural approach to communication proposed in this paper if we are truly serious about finding and communicating with life beyond Earth. The final theme explored in this paper is communication with non-biological super-intelligences using a cross-cultural communication approach. This will present a serious challenge for humanity, as we have never been truly compelled to converse with other species, and our failure to seriously consider such intercourse has left us largely unprepared to deal with communication in a future that will be mediated and controlled by computer algorithms. Fortunately, our experience dealing with other human cultures can provide us with a framework for this communication. The basic assumptions behind intercultural communication can be applied to the many types of communication envisioned in this paper if we are willing to recognize that we are in fact dealing with other cultures when we interact with other species, alien life, and artificial super-intelligence. The ideas considered in this paper will require a new mindset for humanity, but a new disposition will prepare us to face the challenges posed by a future dominated by artificial intelligence.

Keywords: artificial intelligence, CETI, communication, culture, language

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Authors: T. S. Serniabat, M. N. N. Khan, M. F. M. Zain

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As climate change and environmental pressures are now well established as major international issues, to which governments, businesses and consumers have to respond through more environmentally friendly and aware practices, products and policies; the need to develop alternative sustainable construction materials, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, save energy, look to renewable energy sources and recycled materials, and reduce waste are just some of the pressures impacting significantly on the construction industry. The utilization of waste materials (slag, fly ash, glass beads, plastic and so on) in concrete manufacturing is significant due to engineering, financial, environmental and ecological importance. Thus, utilization of waste materials in concrete production is very much helpful to reach the goal of the sustainable construction. Therefore, this study intends to use glass beads in concrete production. The paper reports on the performance of 9 different concrete mixes containing different ratios of glass crushed to 5 mm - 20 mm maximum size and glass marble of 20 mm size as coarse aggregate .Ordinary Portland cement type 1 and fine sand less than 0.5 mm were used to produce standard concrete cylinders. Compressive strength tests were carried out on concrete specimens at various ages. Test results indicated that the mix having the balanced ratio of glass beads and round marbles possess maximum compressive strength which is 3888.68 psi, as glass beads perform better in bond formation but have lower strength, on the other hand marbles are strong in themselves but not good in bonding. These mixes were prepared following a specific W/C and aggregate ratio; more strength can be expected to achieve from different W/C, aggregate ratios, adding admixtures like strength increasing agents, ASR inhibitor agents etc.

Keywords: waste glass, recycling, environmentally friendly, glass aggregate, strength development

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Authors: Man Wai Leung, Margaret O’Donoghue, Lorna K. P. Suen

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Personal and household hygiene measures are important to prevent upper respiratory tract infections (URTIs) and other infectious diseases, including coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). An online survey recruited 414 eligible parents in Hong Kong to study their hygiene knowledge, attitudes, and practices (KAP) in the prevention of URTIs among their children. The average knowledge score was high (10.2/12.0), but some misconceptions were identified. The majority of participants agreed that good personal hygiene (93.5%) and good environmental hygiene (92.8%) can prevent URTIs. The average score for hand hygiene practices was high (3.78/4.00), but only 56.8% of parents always perform hand hygiene before touching their mouth, nose, or eyes. For environmental hygiene, only some household items were disinfected with disinfectants (69.8%: door handles, 60.4%: toilet seats, 42.8%: floor, 24.2%: dining chairs, 20.5%: dining tables). Higher knowledge score was associated with parents having a tertiary educational level or above, working as healthcare professionals, living at private residential flat or staff quarter, and having a household income of $70,000 or above. Hand hygiene practices varied significantly with parents’ age and income. During the 5th wave of the COVID-19 epidemic, misconceptions about hygiene knowledge were found among parents. Health promotion programs should target parents, especially those who are in old age, obtain lower educational levels, live in public housing, or have a lower income. Hand hygiene moments and proper use of disinfectants could be one of the targeted educational topics.

Keywords: hygiene, upper respiratory tract infection, parents, children, COVID-19

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Authors: Bernice Badal

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This article addresses a persistent challenge related to teacher agency in knowledge acquisition in professional development (PD) workshops in contexts of educational change, given that scholarship identifies a need for more teacher involvement and amplification of teacher's voices. Theoretical concepts are drawn from Bandura’s Social cognitive theory, incorporating the triadic causation model of agency to examine the reciprocal nature of the context, teacher characteristics, and systemic influences that shape how knowledge is transmitted and acquired in PD workshops. This qualitative study, using a mix of classroom observations and interviews, explored the political, contextual, and personal characteristics of teacher agency in PD through an analysis of data extracted from a PhD study. The narratives of six teachers from three township schools are examined to show how PD efforts in South Africa have failed to take account of the holistic development of teacher agency in knowledge dissemination and how this shapes teacher self-efficacy beliefs about being able to masterfully apply the tenets of the reform. Agency, teacher voice, and contextual considerations were used as markers of the quality of the training provided to understand how knowledge is acquired and meaning is made. The findings suggest that systemic influences of institutionally imposed PD offer partial understandings of the reform, which is offered in traditional formats that do not consider teacher empowerment in knowledge production and the development of teacher agency. Common in all the participants’ responses is the need for more information and training on the prescribed approach for teaching English as a second language; however, this paper holds the view that more information may not solve teachers’ dilemmas. Accordingly, it recommends a restructuring of the programme with facilitators being more cognisant of teacher agency for the development of transformative teachers. The findings of the study contribute to the field of teacher knowledge, teacher training, and professional development in the context of educational reforms.

Keywords: teacher professional development, teacher voice, teacher agency, educational reforms, teacher knowledge

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Authors: Irit Rutman Halili, Tehila Zvulun, Natali Elgabsi, Revaya Cohen, Shlomo Sarig

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Active sand dunes (ASD) may cause significant damage to field crops and livelihood, and therefore, it is necessary to find a treatment that would enhance ADS soil stability. Biological soil crusts (biocrusts) contain microorganisms on the soil surface. Metabolic polysaccharides secreted by biocrust cyanobacteria glue the soil particles into aggregates, thereby stabilizing the soil surface. Filter cake powder (FCP) is a waste by-product in the final stages of the production of sugar from sugarcane, and its disposal causes significant environmental pollution. FCP contains high concentrations of polysaccharides and has recently been shown to be soil stability enhancing agent in ASD. It has been reported that adding FCP to the ASD soil surface by dispersal significantly increases the level of penetration resistance of soil biocrust (PRSB) nine weeks after a single treatment. However, it was not known whether a similar effect could be obtained by administering the FCP in liquid form by means of spraying. It has now been found that spraying a water solution of FCP onto the ASD soil surface significantly increased the level of penetration resistance of soil biocrust (PRSB) three weeks after a single treatment. These results suggest that FCP spraying can be used as a short-term soil stability-enhancing agent for ASD, while administration by dispersal might be more efficient over the long term. Finally, an additional benefit of using FCP as a soil stabilizer, either by dispersal or by spraying, is the reduction in environmental pollution that would otherwise result from the disposal of FCP solid waste.

Keywords: active sand dunes, filter cake powder, biological soil crusts, penetration resistance of soil biocrust

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Authors: Nigina Toktasynova, Sholpan Sagyndykova, Zhanat Kenzhebayeva, Maksat Kalimoldayev, Mariya Ishimova, Irbulat Utepbergenov

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Any business needs a stable operation and continuous improvement, therefore it is necessary to constantly interact with the environment, to analyze the work of the enterprise in terms of employees, executives and consumers, as well as to correct any inconsistencies of certain types of processes and their aggregate. In the case of heat supply organizations, in addition to suppliers, local legislation must be considered which often is the main regulator of pricing of services. In this case, the process approach used to build a functional organizational structure in these types of businesses in Kazakhstan is a challenge not only in the implementation, but also in ways of analyzing the employee's salary. To solve these problems, we investigated the management system of heating enterprise, including strategic planning based on the balanced scorecard (BSC), quality management in accordance with the standards of the Quality Management System (QMS) ISO 9001 and analysis of the system based on expert judgment using fuzzy inference. To carry out our work we used the theory of fuzzy sets, the QMS in accordance with ISO 9001, BSC according to the method of Kaplan and Norton, method of construction of business processes according to the notation IDEF0, theory of modeling using Matlab software simulation tools and graphical programming LabVIEW. The results of the work are as follows: We determined possibilities of improving the management of heat-supply plant-based on QMS; after the justification and adaptation of software tool it has been used to automate a series of functions for the management and reduction of resources and for the maintenance of the system up to date; an application for the analysis of the QMS based on fuzzy inference has been created with novel organization of communication software with the application enabling the analysis of relevant data of enterprise management system.

Keywords: balanced scorecard, heat supply, quality management system, the theory of fuzzy sets

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Authors: Fleura Shkëmbi, Valbona Treska

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In elementary school, we discover that a metaphor is a decorative linguistic device just for poets. But now that we know, it's also a crucial tactic that individuals employ to understand the universe, from fundamental ideas like time and causation to the most pressing societal challenges today. Metaphor is the use of language to refer to something other than what it was originally intended for or what it "literally" means in order to suggest a similarity or establish a connection between the two. People do not identify metaphors as relevant in their decisions, according to a study on metaphor and its effect on decision-making; instead, they refer to more "substantive" (typically numerical) facts as the basis for their problem-solving decision. Every day, metaphors saturate our lives via language, cognition, and action. They argue that our conceptions shape our views and interactions with others and that concepts define our reality. Metaphor is thus a highly helpful tool for both describing our experiences to others and forming notions for ourselves. In therapeutic contexts, their shared goal appears to be twofold. The cognitivist approach to metaphor regards it as one of the fundamental foundations of human communication. The benefits and disadvantages of utilizing the metaphor differ depending on the target domain that the metaphor portrays. The challenge of creating messages and surroundings that affect customers' notions of abstract ideas in a variety of industries, including health, hospitality, romance, and money, has been studied for decades in marketing and consumer psychology. The aim of this study is to examine, through a systematic literature review, the role of the metaphor in communication and in advertising. This study offers a selected analysis of this literature, concentrating on research on customer attitudes and product appraisal. The analysis of the data identifies potential research questions. With theoretical and applied implications for marketing, design, and persuasion, this study sheds light on how, when, and for whom metaphoric communications are powerful.

Keywords: metaphor, communication, advertising, cognition, action

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Authors: Nasim Eslamirad, Mahdi Rasoulinezhad, Francesco De Luca, Sadok Ben Yahia, Kimmo Sakari Lylykangas, Francesco Pilla

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With the ongoing urbanization, cities face increasing environmental challenges impacting human well-being. To tackle these issues, data-driven approaches in urban analysis have gained prominence, leveraging urban data to promote sustainability. Integrating Machine Learning techniques enables researchers to analyze and predict complex environmental phenomena like Urban Heat Island occurrences in urban areas. This paper demonstrates the implementation of data-driven approach and interpretable Machine Learning algorithms with interpretability techniques to conduct comprehensive data analyses for sustainable urban design. The developed framework and algorithms are demonstrated for Tallinn, Estonia to develop sustainable urban strategies to mitigate urban heat waves. Geospatial data, preprocessed and labeled with UHI levels, are used to train various ML models, with Logistic Regression emerging as the best-performing model based on evaluation metrics to derive a mathematical equation representing the area with UHI or without UHI effects, providing insights into UHI occurrences based on buildings and urban features. The derived formula highlights the importance of building volume, height, area, and shape length to create an urban environment with UHI impact. The data-driven approach and derived equation inform mitigation strategies and sustainable urban development in Tallinn and offer valuable guidance for other locations with varying climates.

Keywords: data-driven approach, machine learning transparent models, interpretable machine learning models, urban heat island effect

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Authors: Mirjana Petronijević, Sanja Panić, Aleksandra Cvetanović, Branko Kordić, Nenad Grba

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Enzyme peroxidases are biological catalysts and play a major role in phenolic wastewater treatments and other environmental applications. The most studied species from the peroxidases family is horseradish peroxidase (HRP). In environmental processes, HRP could be used in its free or immobilized form. Enzyme immobilization onto solid support is performed to improve the enzyme properties, prolong its lifespan and operational stability and allow its reuse in industrial applications. One of the enzyme supports of a newer generation is magnetic particles (MPs). Fe₃O₄ MPs are the most widely pursued immobilization of enzymes owing to their remarkable advantages of biocompatibility and non-toxicity. Also, MPs can be easily separated and recovered from the water by applying an external magnetic field. On the other hand, metals and metal oxides are not suitable for the covalent binding of enzymes, so it is necessary to perform their surface modification. Fe₃O₄ MPs functionalization could be performed during the process of their synthesis if it takes place in the presence of plant extracts. Extracts of plant material, such as wild plants, herbs, even waste materials of the food and agricultural industry (bark, shell, leaves, peel), are rich in various bioactive components such as polyphenols, flavonoids, sugars, etc. When the synthesis of magnetite is performed in the presence of plant extracts, bioactive components are incorporated into the surface of the magnetite, thereby affecting its functionalization. In this paper, the suitability of bio-magnetite as solid support for covalent immobilization of HRP across glutaraldehyde was examined. The activity of immobilized HRP at different pH values (4-9) and temperatures (20-80°C) and reusability were examined. Bio-MP was synthesized by co-precipitation method from Fe(II) and Fe(III) sulfate salts in the presence of water extract of the Allium cepa peel. The water extract showed 81% of antiradical potential (according to DPPH assay), which is connected with the high content of polyphenols. According to the FTIR analysis, the bio-magnetite contains oxygen functional groups (-OH, -COOH, C=O) suitable for binding to glutaraldehyde, after which the enzyme is covalently immobilized. The immobilized enzyme showed high activity at ambient temperature and pH 7 (30 U/g) and retained ≥ 80% of its activity at a wide range of pH (5-8) and temperature (20-50°C). The HRP immobilized onto bio-MPs showed remarkable stability towards temperature and pH variations compared to the free enzyme form. On the other hand, immobilized HRP showed low reusability after the first washing cycle enzyme retains 50% of its activity, while after the third washing cycle retains only 22%.

Keywords: bio-magnetite, enzyme immobilization, water extracts, environmental protection

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