IVIM-DWI is potentially useful for predicting the early efficacy of chemotherapy in a human gastric cancer mouse model.

This study investigates the complete removal of nitrate and the recovery of valuable ammonium salt by the combination of nanoscale zero-valent iron (NZVI) and a membrane contactor system. The NZVI used for the experiments was prepared by chemical reduction without a stabilizing agent. The main end-product of nitrate reduction by NZVI was ammonia, and the solution pH was stably maintained around 10.5. Effective removal of ammonia was possible with the polytetrafluoroethylene membrane contactor system in all tested conditions. Among the various operation parameters including influent pH, concentration, temperature, and contact time, contact time and solution pH showed significant effects on the ammonia removal mechanism. Also, the osmotic distillation phenomena that deteriorate the mass transfer efficiency could be minimized by pre-heating the influent wastewater. The ammonia removal rate could be maximized by optimizing operation conditions and changing the membrane configuration. The combination of NZVI and the membrane contactor system could be a solution for nitrate removal and the recovery of valuable products.

Optimal preparation guidelines of a cathode catalyst layer by non-precious metal catalysts were evaluated based on electrochemical performance in single-chamber microbial fuel cells (MFCs). Experiments for catalyst loading rate revealed that iron(II) phthalocyanine (FePc) can be a promising alternative, comparable to platinum (Pt) and cobalt tetramethoxyphenylporphyrin (CoTMPP), including effects of substrate concentration. Results showed that using an optimal FePc loading of 1 mg/cm 2 was equivalent to a Pt loading of 0.35 mg/cm 2 on the basis of maximum power density. Given higher loading rates or substrate concentrations, FePc proved to be a better alternative for Pt than CoTMPP. Under the optimal loading rate, it was further revealed that 40 wt% of FePc to carbon support allowed for the best power generation. These results suggest that proper control of the non-precious metal catalyst layer and substrate concentration are highly interrelated, and reveal how those combinations promote the economic power generation of single-chamber MFCs.

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