Correction to "Nanometal Dust Explosion in Confined Vessel: Combustion and Kinetic Analysis".

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1021/acsomega.1c00967.].

Palm Raceme as a Promising Biomass Precursor for Activated Carbon to Promote Lipase Activity with the Aid of Eutectic Solvents.

This study concerns the role of activated carbon (AC) from palm raceme as a support material for the enhancement of lipase-catalyzed reactions in an aqueous solution, with deep eutectic solvent (DES) as a co-solvent. The effects of carbonization temperature, impregnation ratio, and carbonization time on lipase activity were studied. The activities of Amano lipase from Burkholderia cepacia (AML) and lipase from the porcine pancreas (PPL) were used to investigate the optimum conditions for AC preparation. The results showed that AC has more interaction with PPL and effectively provides greater enzymatic activity compared with AML. The optimum treatment conditions of AC samples that yield the highest enzymatic activity were 0.5 (NaOH (g)/palm raceme (g)), 150 min, and a carbonization temperature of 400 °C. DES was prepared from alanine/sodium hydroxide and used with AC for the further enhancement of enzymatic activity. Kinetic studies demonstrated that the activity of PPL was enhanced with the immobilization of AC in a DES medium.

Nanometal Dust Explosion in Confined Vessel: Combustion and Kinetic Analysis.

Extensive application of metal powder, particularly in nanosize could potentially lead to catastrophic dust explosion, due to their pyrophoric behavior, ignition sensitivity, and explosivity. To assess the appropriate measures preventing accidental metal dust explosions, it is vital to understand the physicochemical properties of the metal dust and their kinetic mechanism. In this work, explosion severity of aluminum and silver powder, which can be encountered in a passivated emitter and rear contact (PERC) solar cell, was explored in a 0.0012 m3 cylindrical vessel, by varying the particle size and powder concentration. The P max and dP/dt max values of metal powder were demonstrated to increase with decreasing particle size. Additionally, it was found that the explosion severity of silver powder was lower than that of aluminum powder due to the more apparent agglomeration effect of silver particles. The reduction on the specific surface area attributed to the particles' agglomeration affects the oxidation reaction of the metal powder, as illustrated in the thermogravimetric (TG) curves. A sluggish oxidation reaction was demonstrated in the TG curve of silver powder, which is contradicted with aluminum powder. From the X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) analysis, it is inferred that silver powder exhibited two reactions in which the dominant reaction produced Ag and the other reaction formed Ag2O. Meanwhile, for aluminum powder, explosion products only comprise Al2O3.

Effectiveness of a Novel Index System in Preventing Early Hearing Loss among Furniture Industry Skills Training Students in Malaysia.

Occupational noise-induced hearing loss (ONIHL) is the most reported occupational disease in Malaysia. ONIHL is aggravated by the presence of early hearing loss amongst the youth prior to entering a real working environment. At technical and vocational education training (TVET) institutions, students may develop early ONIHL because training workshops are designed imitating the industrial working environment to produce skilled workers. The exceeding noise level at workshops and recent risk of non-occupational noise can cause early ONIHL among these students. Therefore, ONIHL must be addressed at the early stage of producing skilled workers. Octa hearing conservation index (OHCI) system is developed as a management and monitoring tool for hearing conservation program (HCP) in TVET institutions. Six existing and two new HCP components were used to build the index system. A pilot test on the effectiveness of the OHCI system was conducted in a selected TVET institution for six months. The post-HCP shows a 52.6% improvement compared to the pre-HCP. The implementation of HCP has shown improved awareness on the hazards of loud noise exposure and active use of hearing protection devices among participants. The OHCI system has a great potential as a tool to improve HCP implementation in TVET institutions, and eventually, industry.