Recently, oily wastewater has become an urgent cross-regional problem. Membrane technology is considered a sound solution to this crisis. However, membrane fouling causes a sharp decrease in water permeance and service life, which greatly restricts membrane applications. In addition to a few degradable materials, the most severely polluted membranes are burned or buried in the soil, wasting resources and accelerating ecological damage. Inspired by Guandong candy, we reported a novel, facile, and green approach to construct composite polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) membranes with stable self-cleaning, anti-oil-fouling, and photocatalytic recovery properties for efficient oil-in-water emulsions separation. Due to the synergistic effect of the superhydrophilic tin dioxide/titanate nanotubes (SnO2/TNTs) and Guandong-candy-inspired electrolessly welding organic-inorganic hybrid colloids, the composite PVDF membrane showed remarkable stability and underwater oil-repellency properties. Accordingly, the composite PVDF membrane achieved excellent water permeance (>2600 L m(-2) h(- 1 )bar(- 1)), superior separation efficiency (>99.6 %), and long-term antifouling performance during soybean oilin-water emulsion separation. More importantly, the composite PVDF membrane exhibited highly efficient selfcleaning and recovery of the PVDF membrane and SnO2/TNTs under visible-light irradiation. Within the framework of green and sustainable concepts, this is a novel reusable idea for the recyclable utilization of commercial PVDF membranes and photocatalytic minerals in oily wastewater purification.

Polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB) has gained attention as an excellent packaging material due to its high crystallinity, biodegradability, low interaction with food matrices, and favorable mechanical properties. This study explores the development of PHB films incorporated with potassium sorbate (KS) and gallic acid (GA) via solvent casting, followed by a 30-day biodegradation test in soil. The films are analyzed for physicochemical and microbiological properties using X-ray diffraction, tensile testing, and disk diffusion assays. The soil-buried PHB films demonstrate accelerated biodegradation, likely driven by increased microbial and fungal activity, as well as moisture absorption. Incorporating KS and GA significantly enhances the antimicrobial efficacy of the films against both Gram-negative Escherichia coli and Gram-positive Staphylococcus aureus, with greater inhibition observed against S. aureus. This difference may stem from the additional lipopolysaccharide membrane in E. coli. Field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM) of the films, both pre- and post-biodegradation, provides further insights into their structural changes. These findings underscore the potential of PHB antimicrobial films in advancing sustainable food packaging applications.

Salinity stress significantly impacts crops, disrupting their water balance and nutrient uptake, reducing growth, yield, and overall plant health. High salinity in soil can adversely affect plants by disrupting their water balance. Excessive salt levels can lead to dehydration, hinder nutrient absorption, and damage plant cells, ultimately impairing growth and reducing crop yields. Gallic acid (GA) and zinc ferrite (ZnFNP) can effectively overcome this problem. GA can promote root growth, boost photosynthesis, and help plants absorb nutrients efficiently. However, their combined application as an amendment against drought still needs scientific justification. Zinc ferrite nanoparticles possess many beneficial properties for soil remediation and medical applications. That's why the current study used a combination of GA and ZnFNP as amendments to wheat. There were 4 treatments, i.e., 0, 10 mu M GA, 15 mu M GA, and 20 mu M GA, without and with 5 mu M ZnFNP applied in 4 replications following a completely randomized design. Results exhibited that 20 mu M GA + 5 mu M ZnFNP caused significant improvement in wheat shoot length (28.62%), shoot fresh weight (16.52%), shoot dry weight (11.38%), root length (3.64%), root fresh weight (14.72%), and root dry weight (9.71%) in contrast to the control. Significant enrichment in wheat chlorophyll a (19.76%), chlorophyll b (25.16%), total chlorophyll (21.35%), photosynthetic rate (12.72%), transpiration rate (10.09%), and stomatal conductance (15.25%) over the control validate the potential of 20 mu M GA + 5 mu M ZnFNP. Furthermore, improvement in N, P, and K concentration in grain and shoot verified the effective functioning of 20 mu M GA + 5 mu M ZnFNP compared to control. In conclusion, 20 mu M GA + 5 mu M ZnFNP can potentially improve the growth, chlorophyll contents and gas exchange attributes of wheat cultivated in salinity stress. More investigations are suggested to declare 20 mu M GA + 5 mu M ZnFNP as the best amendment for alleviating salinity stress in different cereal crops.