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Topic Review
Recovery of Rare Earth Elements
Rare earth elements (REEs) as defined by the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC) include metals characterized by similar properties, namely scandium (Sc), yttrium (Y) and all the lanthanides. The latter correspond to the chemical elements listed in the periodic table of Mendeleev that have an atomic number ranging from 57 for lanthanum (La) to 71 for lutetium (Lu). REEs are often subdivided into “light rare earths elements” (LREEs) and “heavy rare earths elements” (HREEs) according to their atomic numbers. Yttrium is oftentimes associated with HREEs due to chemical similarities, including ionic radii. In some cases, the elements from samarium to terbium are considered as the “middle rare earth elements” (MREEs). 
  • 802
  • 03 Aug 2021
Topic Review
Epithelial Cells in Environmental-Associated Airway Diseases
People are exposed to contaminants through the respiratory tract and skin; they first reach the bloodstream and, subsequently, the organs, causing more or less serious damage to health. Thus, the effects of atmospheric pollution affect the respiratory tract with acute symptoms and the circulatory system with cardiovascular events, leading to hospitalizations and mortality. In addition to the acute effects, long-term effects can also be had, including an alteration of lung function in adults, children, and adolescents. Specifically, in children and adolescents, chronic exposure to air pollution is associated with a reduction in forced vital capacity (FVC), which correlates with age and can be interpreted as a reduction in the lung growth and respiratory function of the lower airways. Children, together with elderly persons, are the most sensitive subjects to environmental pollution; to these are added subjects with chronic respiratory diseases such as asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Emerging contaminants induce pulmonary toxicity by promoting an inflammatory response in lung epithelial cells.
  • 783
  • 15 Mar 2022
Topic Review
Integration of Environmental Justice and Sustainability in Practice
The environmental justice (EJ) movement has been a key factor in the United States’ struggle to provide a healthy environment for all to thrive. The origins of the movement date as far back as the 1960’s, led primarily by people of color and low economic status communities living in America’s most polluted environments. More recently, the just sustainability movement calls for the inclusion of EJ considerations, including social justice, equity, and human rights, into sustainability science and initiatives.
  • 772
  • 13 Jan 2022
Topic Review
A city Multi-Floor Manufacturing Cluster
Multi-floor manufacturing cluster (MFMC) comprise production and service enterprises of various types of ownership, mainly SMEs, with different production orientations, with the presence of small-scale in-house equipment. This feature of MFMC promotes business competition, allowing for creating collaborative and networked organizations that can happen at some stages of development and can reach a level of a virtual manufacturing network based on Digital Twins models to fulfil customer orders.
  • 764
  • 28 Mar 2022
Topic Review
The Water–Energy–Food Nexus Index
The water–energy–food (WEF) Nexus Index is a quantitative measure and representation of country-level WEF security based on 21 water, energy, and food security indicators. The WEF nexus has emerged as a leading tool for assessing integrated resource management strategies and for monitoring progress towards the WEF-related Sustainable Development Goals. A notable outcome of WEF nexus research has been the calculation of the global WEF Nexus Index, which provides a quantitative ranking of country-level WEF security for 170 nations.
  • 761
  • 11 Feb 2022
Topic Review
Development Environments and Factors of Subsidence Dolines
On covered karsts, the frequent and rapid development of subsidence dolines result in the striking change of surface conditions and this process may cause a significant damage to man-made constructions. According to current scientific knowledge, a prediction on the development of subsidence dolines and their development sites, by which the damage could be reduced to a great extent, is not possible yet. Based on literary data, in this study, development environments and impacts are described that affect subsidence doline development and the site of development. Point of views are suggested for predicting the development and development sites.
  • 745
  • 11 Jan 2022
Topic Review
Conventional Event Tree Analysis on Liquefied Natural Gas
Liquefied natural gas (LNG) is stored in facilities located in urban areas and transported over public roads. A shift towards the broader use of LNG is economically and environmentally justified. Conventional event trees for LNG emergency release in three different units is a concept that is based on the physical and chemical properties of LNG. It has been designed with deep consideration and analysis of past experiences and real cases of LNG incidents. The idea of having training checkpoints, such as ‘decision points’ and ‘learning curve points’ in the continuum of a training or exercise enable the achievement of optimal learning objectives in a flexible way which take into account the trainee individual mental and physical disposition on a day, scalability of difficulty level as well as realistic scenario paths determined by the performance of the trainees facing concrete operational problems.
  • 734
  • 07 Mar 2022
Topic Review
Fertilization and Soil Microbial Community
Crop production is currently expanding globally due to an increased demand for food, animal feed and biofuels; the latter has been stimulated by the increase in oil prices making bioenergy crops more competitive and profitable compared to fossil fuels. Chemical fertilizers (also termed mineral, inorganic or synthetic fertilizers) contain a high concentration of a primary nutrient (nitrogen, N; potassium, K; phosphorous, P) as inorganic salts. Secondary elements (calcium, magnesium and sulfur) can also be added to soil by chemical fertilizers. Micronutrients (boron, manganese, iron, zinc, copper, molybdenum, cobalt and chlorine) are in general absent in NPK chemical fertilizers and can be supplied by specific synthetic and expensive plant nutrients with soil or foliar applications. Soil microbes have different responses to fertilization based on differences in the total carbon (C), nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) contents in the soil, along with soil moisture and the presence of plant species.
  • 721
  • 11 Mar 2022
Topic Review
Fermented Foods and Gut Microbiota
Fermented foods and beverages are generally defined as products made by microbial organisms and enzymatic conversions of major and minor food components. Further to the commonly-recognized effects of nutrition on the digestive health and well-being, there is now strong evidence for the impact of fermented foods and beverages, produced or preserved by the action of microorganisms, on general health, namely their significance on the gut microbiota balance and brain functionality. 
  • 725
  • 19 May 2021
Topic Review
Methods of Thermal Treatment of Radioactive Waste
Nuclear power is generated by a small amount of fuel, as related to other non-renewable energy sources. The volume of waste formed in this process is comparably small. Thermal treatment of waste is a term given to any treatment technology that involves high temperatures in the processing of the waste feedstock. All the thermal treatment methods used for normal waste have been applied to radioactive waste.  
  • 716
  • 24 Jan 2022
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