Advanced Biodegradation Technologies for Environmental Pollutants

A special issue of Processes (ISSN 2227-9717). This special issue belongs to the section "Environmental and Green Processes".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 20 December 2024 | Viewed by 1430

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Guest Editor
Course of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Division of Sustainable and Environmental Engineering, Muroran Institute of Technology, Muroran 050-8585, Hokkaido, Japan
Interests: applied microorganisms; bioplastic production using biomass and toxic compounds; biodegradation of toxic compounds and bioplastics; bioremediation; health-functional substance production; medium-chain fatty acids’ production
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The modern ecosystem is in critical condition due to the anthropogenic activity of environmental pollutant releases. In the environment, environmental pollutants include synthetic pesticides, herbicides, petroleum, textile wastewater, heavy metals, xenobiotic compounds, polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons, volatile organic compounds, plastics, and industrial pollutants. The scientific community has developed many techniques to remediate toxic compounds from the environment. However, day by day, high amounts of toxic compounds are emerging. Microbial bioremediation of toxic compounds can reduce the risk of pollutants entering the environment. Biodegradation is a biological process that utilizes natural microbial populations to rapidly eliminate toxic compounds from soil and water streams. Thus, the contribution of microbes to cleaning the environment has been successfully determined. The microorganisms maintain a clean and green environment. Countless studies have been reported about toxic compound degradation using microorganisms. This Special Issue provides valuable information on technologies based upon the use of biological agents, including bacteria, fungi, and plants, for environmental cleanup. The combination of strategies helps efficiently remove pollutants generated from anthropogenic activities with minimal environmental impact. In addition, interest in the bioremediation of toxic compounds to find sustainable ways for environmental cleanup has increased in recent years. Advanced biodegradation technology will undoubtedly accelerate the development of bioremediation technologies for cleaning recalcitrants in the coming years and provide recent knowledge and approaches to the biodegradation of environmental pollutants. The expansive coverage of this Special Issue will give readers a wide range of options for developing biological treatment strategies for environmental pollutants.

This Special Issue, entitled “Advanced Biodegradation Technologies for Environmental Pollutants”, aims to report recent advances in the development of biodegradation technology for environmental pollutants.

Prof. Dr. Young-Cheol Chang
Guest Editor

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Keywords

  • bioremediation
  • biodegradation
  • biosorption
  • xenobiotic compounds
  • heavy metals
  • enhanced microbiological treatment using genetic engineering
  • genomic, metagenomic, proteomic, and bioinformatic analyses
  • phytoremediation
  • bacterial community analysis
  • nanomaterial-assisted biodegradation

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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Research

20 pages, 2434 KiB  
Article
Ibuprofen Formulations: Permeability and Biodegradability Comparison Depending on the Type of Formulation
by Edyta Kucharska, Berin Ok, Anna Nowak, Łukasz Kucharski, Anna Muzykiewicz-Szymańska and Paula Ossowicz-Rupniewska
Processes 2024, 12(6), 1236; https://doi.org/10.3390/pr12061236 - 16 Jun 2024
Viewed by 840
Abstract
This study assesses ibuprofen’s permeability to different formulations and their biodegradation. Hydrogel, organogel, Eucerin ointment, silicone ointment, and zinc ointment were investigated. The objective was to comprehensively evaluate the therapeutic efficacy and environmental implications of these formulations. Diverse formulations were examined through the [...] Read more.
This study assesses ibuprofen’s permeability to different formulations and their biodegradation. Hydrogel, organogel, Eucerin ointment, silicone ointment, and zinc ointment were investigated. The objective was to comprehensively evaluate the therapeutic efficacy and environmental implications of these formulations. Diverse formulations were examined through the utilisation of Franz diffusion chambers to evaluate the in vitro permeability of both ibuprofen and ibuprofenate sodium. Moreover, biodegradation studies of the obtained formulations were carried out with activated sludge. The activity of the inoculum was confirmed by using SDS as a reference compound. The experimental settings used (carbon content and inoculum volume) were selected based on the criteria set by the OECD guidelines. Relevant parameters pertaining to the biodegradation process were estimated, including biodegradation values (%B) at specific time points, half-lives of initial compounds and API-containing formulations, and degradation phases (lag phase I; degradation phase II, and plate phase III). For comparison purposes, biodegradation studies were also carried out for the initial IBU and IBUNa compounds under the same conditions. The environmental implications of these findings underscore the need for a balanced consideration of therapeutic efficacy and environmental sustainability in pharmaceutical formulation design. This study provides valuable insights for pharmaceutical researchers, environmental scientists, and regulatory bodies involved in the development and assessment of drug formulations. The proposed method of removing NSAIDs from aquatic ecosystems is a cheaper alternative to techniques such as reverse osmosis, oxidation, UV degradation, or photolysis, which have not found practical use owing to the generation of toxic sludge or high capital and operating costs. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advanced Biodegradation Technologies for Environmental Pollutants)
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