In the last three decades, pharmaceuticals research has increased tremendously to offer safe and healthy life, though it emerged as a new threat to the environment. These pharmaceutical residues pose a threat to the public health, and ecological balance, particularly in surface water located in agricultural catchments are facing more serious challenges. If these pharmaceutical residues left untreated could contaminate soil, water and may lead to serious outbreaks. However, many conventional treatments are integrated into wastewater treatment plants (WWTP's), but there is a lack of dedicated treatment in eliminating pharmaceutical residues. Thus, dedicated on-site treatment at source (such as Hospitals and pharmaceutical industries) is essentially needed before discharging effluent to sewers or water bodies. Furthermore, the potential impact of pharmaceutical compounds even in trace concentration is more severe than the other pollutants present in the environment. In contrast, very limited knowledge about how such compounds and their kinetics directly impacts the environment and long-term impacts on humans. Traces of antibiotic compounds in the aquatic environment lead to resistant bacterial strains, exhibit threat to organisms and human health, hence affecting treatment. The recent literature reported that the pharmaceutical residues enter the environment in trace level. But, in long terms, these pharmaceuticals, even in trace concentration, has a potential threat to human health and terrestrial ecosystem. In this review article, we summarize the pharmaceutical residues potential to cause disease outbreaks in community and eco-toxicological impacts on aquatic organisms. Herein, we have reviewed the literature to draw worldwide attention on rising pharmaceutical residues in the environment and associated impacts, disease outbreaks and eco-hazards. KeywordsPharmaceutical • Hospital wastewater • Wastewater treatment • Eco-toxicological impacts • Environmental risk Editorial responsibility: Hari Pant.

As the environment and the human body face harmful effects of toxic gases such as carbon monoxide (CO), many research efforts have been directed toward elimination of these species through various adsorption processes. Unique properties of γ-Al 2 O 3 in CO capture have led us to prepare SnO 2 /Al 2 O 3 , Ni/Al 2 O 3 , and SnO 2 /Ni/Al 2 O 3 composite nanocrystalline films using the roll-coating method. The crystalline structure and morphology of the coatings were investigated using X-ray diffraction and field-emission scanning electron microscopy, respectively. The performed analyses revealed the complex microstructure of the coatings composed of fine grains and welldispersed nanoparticles that aggregated to form larger welldeveloped clusters. Following this, adsorption characteristics of the samples were measured using the KIMO KIGAZ 210 continuous flow gas analyzer. Finally, the kinetics of the CO adsorption process was studied using various diffusion models: pseudo-first-order, pseudo-second-order, and intraparticle.

No abstract

Purpose: of this paper is to justification the most rational method for the nanostructures synthesis on the semiconductors surface, which is capable of providing high quality synthesized nanostructures at low cost and ease of the process. Design/methodology/approach: The choice of the optimal method of synthesis was carried out using the hierarchy analysis method, which is implemented by decomposing the problem into more simple parts and further processing judgments at each hierarchical level using pair comparisons. Findings: The article describes the main methods of synthesis of nanostructures, presents their advantages and disadvantages. The methods were evaluated by such criteria as: environmental friendliness, efficiency, stages number of the technological process, complexity, resources expenditure and time and effectiveness. Using the hierarchy analysis method, has been established that electrochemical etching is the most important alternative, and when choosing a nanostructures synthesis method on the semiconductors surface, this method should be preferred. Such studies are necessary for industrial serial production of nanostructures and allow reducing expenses at the realization of the problem of synthesis of qualitative samples. Research limitations/implications: In this research, the hierarchy analysis method was used only to select a rational method for synthesizing nanostructures on the semiconductors surface. However, this research needs to be developed with respect to establishing a correlation between the synthesis conditions and the nanostructures acquired properties. Practical implications: First, was been established that the optimal method for the nanostructures synthesis on the semiconductors surface is electrochemical etching, and not lithographic or chemical method. This allowed the theoretical and empirical point of view to justify the choice of the nanostructures synthesis method in the industrial production conditions. Secondly, the presented method can be applied to the synthesis method choice of other nanostructures types, which is necessary in conditions of resources exhaustion and high raw materials cost. Originality/value: In the article, for the first time, the choice of the nanostructures synthesis method on the semiconductors surface is presented using of paired comparisons of criteria and available alternatives. The article will be useful to engineers involved in the nanostructures synthesis, researchers and scientists, as well as students studying in the field of "nanotechnology".

CO gas adsorption has become a topic of great significance and worthy of investigation. The purpose of this study was to explore the CO adsorption of Al 2 O 3 /Zeolite composite films prepared by a roll coating method. XRD, FESEM, and EDX analyses have been used to study the structural, morphological, and elemental properties of Al 2 O 3 /Zeolite composite films. A gas analyzer was used to probe CO gas adsorption on the composite films at a constant temperature and pressure. The concentration of inlet CO gas and saturation level was 190 and 4 mg L −1 , respectively. The maximum values of adsorption efficiency and uptake capacity were measured at 97.89% and 213.9 mg g −1 . To determine the kinetic study, three models were investigated: pseudo-first-order, pseudo-second-order, and intra-particle diffusion. The pseudo-second-order model was suitable for CO adsorption by Al 2 O 3 /Zeolite adsorbent. Additionally, the rate-controlling step for Al 2 O 3 /Zeolite adsorbent was identified through the intra-particle diffusion model.