@article{hasan_kasera_beck_hall_2024, title={Potential of<i> Synechococcus</i><i> elongatus</i> UTEX 2973 as a feedstock for sugar production during mixed aquaculture and swine wastewater bioremediation}, volume={10}, ISSN={["2405-8440"]}, DOI={10.1016/j.heliyon.2024.e24646}, abstractNote={The demand for protein is increasing with an expanding world population and is influencing the rapid growth of fish and animal agriculture. These sectors are becoming a significant source of water pollution and need to develop environmentally sustainable techniques that are cost-effective, ideally with potential for downstream value-added production. This study investigated the potential of one of the fastest-growing cyanobacterial species, Synechococcus elongatus UTEX 2973, for bioremediation of mixed wastewater (combination of sturgeon and swine wastewater). Three different mixing ratios (25:75, 50:50, and 75:25 sturgeon:swine) were compared to find a suitable combination for the growth of S. elongatus as well as carbohydrate accumulation in biomass. The final biomass production was found to be 0.65 ± 0.03 g Dry cell Weight (DW)/L for 75%-25 %, 0.90 ± 0.004 g DW/L for 50%-50 %, and 0.71 ± 0.04 g DW/L for 25%-75 % sturgeon-swine wastewater combination. Cyanobacteria cultivated in 50%-50 % sturgeon-swine wastewater also accumulated 70 % total carbohydrate of DW, whereas 75%-25 % sturgeon-swine and 25%-75 % sturgeon-swine accumulated 53 % and 45 %, respectively. Subsequently, the S. elongatus cells were grown in a separate batch of 50%-50 % sturgeon-swine wastewater and compared with cells grown in BG11 synthetic growth media. Cultivation in BG11 resulted in higher biomass production but lower carbohydrate accumulation than 50%-50 % mixed wastewater. Final biomass production was 0.85 ± 0.08 g DW/L for BG11 and 0.65 ± 0.04 g DW/L for 50%-50 % sturgeon-swine wastewater. Total carbohydrate accumulated was 75 % and 64 % of DW for 50%-50 % sturgeon-swine mixed wastewater and BG11 growth media, respectively, where glycogen was the main carbohydrate component (90 %). The nutrient removal efficiencies of S. elongatus were 67.15 % for orthophosphate, 93.39 % for nitrate-nitrite, and 97.98 % for ammonia. This study suggested that S. elongatus is a promising candidate for enabling simultaneous bioremediation of mixed wastewater and the production of value-added biochemicals.}, number={3}, journal={HELIYON}, author={Hasan, Rifat and Kasera, Nitesh and Beck, Ashley E. and Hall, Steven G.}, year={2024}, month={Feb} }
 @article{salem_kasera_rahman_jameel_habibi_eichhorn_french_pal_lucia_2023, title={Comparison and assessment of methods for cellulose crystallinity determination}, volume={52}, ISSN={0306-0012 1460-4744}, url={http://dx.doi.org/10.1039/D2CS00569G}, DOI={10.1039/d2cs00569g}, abstractNote={A suite of techniques is compared to understand the requirements, differences, synergies, and limitations of each method more comprehensively. Our review summarizes key principles to guide studies on the structure of cellulosics.}, number={18}, journal={Chemical Society Reviews}, publisher={Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC)}, author={Salem, Khandoker Samaher and Kasera, Nitesh Kumar and Rahman, Md. Ashiqur and Jameel, Hasan and Habibi, Youssef and Eichhorn, Stephen J. and French, Alfred D. and Pal, Lokendra and Lucia, Lucian A.}, year={2023}, pages={6417–6446} }
 @article{kasera_augoustides_kolar_hall_vicente_2022, title={Effect of Surface Modification by Oxygen-Enriched Chemicals on the Surface Properties of Pine Bark Biochars}, volume={10}, ISSN={["2227-9717"]}, url={https://doi.org/10.3390/pr10102136}, DOI={10.3390/pr10102136}, abstractNote={Sustainable waste utilization techniques are needed to combat the environmental and economic challenges faced worldwide due to the rising population. Biochars, due to their unique surface properties, offer opportunities to modify their surface to prepare application-specific materials. The aim of this research is to study the effects of biochar surface modification by oxidizing chemicals on biochar properties. Pine bark biochar was modified with sulfuric acid, nitric acid, hydrogen peroxide, ozone, and ammonium persulfate. The resulting biochars’ pH, pH at the point of zero charges, and concentration of acidic and basic sites were determined using laboratory experimentation. Instrumental techniques, such as infrared and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, were also obtained for all biochar samples. X-ray photoelectron spectra showed that oxygen content increased to 44.5%, 42.2%, 33.8%, 30.5%, and 14.6% from 13.4% for sulfuric acid, ozone, nitric acid, hydrogen peroxide, and ammonium persulfate, respectively. The pH at the point of zero charges was negatively correlated with the difference in concentration of acidic and basic sites in biochar samples, as well as the summation of peak components representing C=O double bonds and carboxylic groups. The results suggest that designer biochars can be prepared by understanding the interaction of oxygenated chemicals with biochar surfaces.}, number={10}, journal={PROCESSES}, author={Kasera, Nitesh and Augoustides, Victoria and Kolar, Praveen and Hall, Steven G. and Vicente, Billie}, year={2022}, month={Oct} }
 @misc{kasera_kolar_hall_2022, title={Nitrogen-doped biochars as adsorbents for mitigation of heavy metals and organics from water: a review}, volume={4}, ISSN={["2524-7867"]}, url={https://doi.org/10.1007/s42773-022-00145-2}, DOI={10.1007/s42773-022-00145-2}, abstractNote={Abstract}, number={1}, journal={BIOCHAR}, author={Kasera, Nitesh and Kolar, Praveen and Hall, Steven G.}, year={2022}, month={Dec} }
 @article{kasera_hall_kolar_2021, title={Characterization data of N-doped biochars using different external nitrogen precursors}, volume={35}, ISSN={["2352-3409"]}, url={http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?eid=2-s2.0-85101092311&partnerID=MN8TOARS}, DOI={10.1016/j.dib.2021.106870}, abstractNote={The development of waste-derived functional materials for environmental and energy applications is a sustainable approach to fight global warming, and address energy and materials challenges. In this regard, many scientists are interested in the supercapacitor, adsorbent, and catalyst applications of nitrogen-doped biochars. In this article, we report the data that was collected as a part of our research on the effects of different external nitrogenous sources on the properties of biochar [1]. The data on infrared spectra of the modified samples at various temperatures is valuable to study the changes in functional groups on biochar as a function of temperature as well as nitrogen precursors. Raw data from Time-of-flight Secondary ion mass spectroscopy, surface profilometry, and scanning electron microscopy-energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy are also provided. We expect that the data will benefit researchers around the world working in the field of nitrogen modifications of biochar.}, journal={DATA IN BRIEF}, author={Kasera, Nitesh and Hall, Steven and Kolar, Praveen}, year={2021}, month={Apr} }
 @article{augoustides_kasera_kolar_2021, title={Chemical characterization data of raw Loblolly pine bark nuggets}, volume={33}, url={http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?eid=2-s2.0-85107678787&partnerID=MN8TOARS}, DOI={10.1016/j.cdc.2021.100727}, abstractNote={There is a significant interest in repurposing commercial agricultural waste products, such as lignocellulosic pine bark biomass, to produce biochar as a nutritive soil enhancer, and as an adsorbent to remove toxic contaminants from water. Collecting and understanding the baseline chemical properties of this material is necessary for its use in industrial design and engineering solutions. Therefore, experiments were performed to characterize the chemical properties of raw Loblolly pine bark (Pinus taeda) using wet chemistry, microscopy, and spectroscopy. The results indicated that the acid value of the pine bark and the point of zero charge (pHpzc) were found to be at a pH of 7.01 and 5.51, respectively. Energy Dispersive X-ray (EDX), X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS), and Time of Flight-Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometry (TOF-SIMS) analysis revealed that the biomass was primarily composed of the elements C, O, N, S, and had traces of Al, Si, Ca, and K. Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) provided insight into the relative roughness and geometry of the biomass surface. It is expected that these data will be useful for the researchers working with Loblolly pine bark.}, journal={Chemical Data Collections}, author={Augoustides, V. and Kasera, N. and Kolar, P.}, year={2021} }
 @article{kasera_hall_kolar_2021, title={Effect of surface modification by nitrogen-containing chemicals on morphology and surface characteristics of N-doped pine bark biochars}, volume={9}, ISSN={["2213-3437"]}, url={https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jece.2021.105161}, DOI={10.1016/j.jece.2021.105161}, abstractNote={In this study, pine bark-derived biochar was modified with melamine, urea, ammonium chloride, and ammonium nitrate to synthesize nitrogen-doped biochars. The effect of chemical modification on the extent of N-doping and surface properties were investigated. The elemental analysis suggested that melamine modified biochar samples had 4.75% nitrogen, higher than nitrogen in other modified biochars. The surface morphology and surface profile were studied with scanning electron microscopy and confocal laser scanning microscopy. X-ray photoelectron spectra showed that N-doped samples' surface nitrogen content increased to 8.3%, 3.9%, 2.3%, and 2.9% for melamine, ammonium chloride, ammonium nitrate, and urea, respectively. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy results also revealed that among the nitrogen fractions in the N-doped biochars, melamine modified biochar has the highest percentage of pyrrolic and pyridinic nitrogen (35.2% and 36.8%, respectively) compared to others. Urea modified biochar had the highest percentage of graphitic nitrogen (26.6%). Our results suggest that application-specific nitrogen-enriched biochar can be prepared by understanding how different nitrogen precursors interact with carbon surfaces.}, number={2}, journal={JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL CHEMICAL ENGINEERING}, publisher={Elsevier BV}, author={Kasera, Nitesh and Hall, Steven and Kolar, Praveen}, year={2021}, month={Apr} }
 @inproceedings{hall_campbell_campbell_geddie_frinsko_greensword_hasan_kasera_malveaux_paul_et al._2021, title={Smart systems to enhance sustainability and add value to marine aquaculture}, volume={3}, url={http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?eid=2-s2.0-85114206955&partnerID=MN8TOARS}, DOI={10.13031/aim.202100523}, abstractNote={<b><sc>Abstract.</sc></b> Aquaculture of aquatic plants and animals is the fastest growing protein sector in the world. However, concerns about sustainability have been raised including potential impacts on nutrients (eutrophication); disease, and impacts on wild fish/fisheries. Conversely, with wild fisheries already at or beyond sustainable catch in many areas, aquaculture may be the most efficient and sustainable way of producing more aquatic foods and resources. Smart systems include both automated electronic systems and smart management of resources – e.g. waste treatment and value added. Automation in aquaculture already includes many commercially available water quality sensors. Autonomous and semi-autonomous flyers (e.g. multicopters, ‘drones‘), boats and underwater vehicles can help sense water quality parameters in open (e.g. estuary, ocean) systems. With further development, these systems may also allow active interventions to reduce the impacts of storm events, toxicity and other environmental impacts. Smart management of “wastes” – e.g. nutrients – should use current knowledge to add value, perhaps with multitrophic aquaculture systems. For example finfish wastes may be used to produce macro and microalgae; some of which may be fed to shellfish, enhancing water quality, producing food, energy and other resources. Truly wise management of these sectors may allow increased aquacultural productivity as well as optimal focus and protection of critical conservation areas. Much future work should focus on smart thinking to add value; and corobotics, where robots provide people with more information, allowing wiser decisions, resulting in more sustainable and productive aquaculture systems.}, booktitle={American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers Annual International Meeting, ASABE 2021}, author={Hall, S.G. and Campbell, M. and Campbell, V. and Geddie, A. and Frinsko, M. and Greensword, M. and Hasan, R. and Kasera, N. and Malveaux, C. and Paul, D. and et al.}, year={2021}, pages={1488–1497} }
 @article{paul_kasera_kolar_hall_2020, title={Physicochemical characterization data of pine-derived biochar and natural zeolite as precursors to catalysts}, volume={30}, url={http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?eid=2-s2.0-85096183452&partnerID=MN8TOARS}, DOI={10.1016/j.cdc.2020.100573}, abstractNote={There is a significant interest in the use of biochar and zeolite-based adsorbents and catalysts for the removal of contaminants from water, air, and soil. Understanding the properties of these materials can dramatically improve engineering design and commercial use of these materials, leading to improved sustainability, cost reductions and effective use of materials. In this article, pine-derived biochar and commercially available natural zeolite have been systematically studied. The physical and chemical properties of biochar and zeolite have been investigated using different characterization methods such as acid value, point of zero charge (PZC), Scanning Electron Microscopy, Surface Profilometry, Fourier Transform Infrared Spectrometry, X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy, Time of Flight-Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometry, surface charge, and cation exchange capacity (CEC). The acid values of biochar and zeolite were determined to be 6.10 and 6.73, respectively while their PZC were 5.82 and 6.74, respectively. Surface profilometry test indicated that zeolite was about 1.6 times rougher than biochar. Additionally, the surface charge of biochar and zeolite were determined to be 214.28 and 1060 µeq of PDADMAC/gm, respectively while their cation exchange capacities were 17.5 and 32.5 cmol/kg, respectively. It is anticipated that researchers will find the characterization data presented in this article useful for further study and modification of these materials to be used as precursors for the synthesis of catalysts and other value-added products.}, journal={Chemical Data Collections}, author={Paul, D. and Kasera, N. and Kolar, P. and Hall, S.G.}, year={2020} }