The rapid pace of innovations and the frequency of replacement of electrical and electronic equipment has made waste printed circuit boards (WPCB) one of the fastest growing waste streams. The frequency of replacement of equipment can be caused by a limited time of proper functioning and increasing malfunctions. Resource utilization of WPCBs have become some of the most profitable companies in the recycling industry. To facilitate WPCB recycling, several advanced technologies such as pyrometallurgy, hydrometallurgy and biometallurgy have been developed. Bioleaching uses naturally occurring microorganisms and their metabolic products to recover valuable metals, which is a promising technology due to its cost-effectiveness, environmental friendliness, and sustainability. However, there is sparse comprehensive research on WPCB bioleaching. Therefore, in this work, a short review was conducted from the perspective of potential microorganisms, bioleaching mechanisms and parameter optimization. Perspectives on future research directions are also discussed.

The fouling mechanism of the anion exchange membrane (AEM) induced by natural organic matter (NOM) in the absence and presence of calcium ions was systematically investigated via the extended Derjaguin–Landau–Verwey–Overbeek (xDLVO) approach. Sodium alginate (SA), humic acid (HA), and bovine serum albumin (BSA) were utilized as model NOM fractions. The results indicated that the presence of calcium ions tremendously aggravated the NOM fouling on the anion exchange membrane because of Ca-NOM complex formation. Furthermore, analysis of the interaction energy between the membrane surface and foulants via xDLVO revealed that short-range acid–base (AB) interaction energy played a significant role in the compositions of interaction energy during the electrodialysis (ED) process. The influence of NOM fractions in the presence of calcium ions on membrane fouling followed the order: SA > BSA > HA. This study demonstrated that the interaction energy was a dominating indicator for evaluating the tendency of anion exchange membranes fouling by natural organic matter.

In the present work, a novel mixed matrix cation exchange membrane composed of sulfonated polyether sulfone (SPES), N-phthaloyl chitosan (NPHCs) and MIL-101(Fe) was synthesized using response surface methodology (RSM). The electrochemical and physical properties of the membrane, such as ion exchange capacity, water content, morphology, contact angle, fixed ion concentration and thermal stability were investigated. The RSM based on the Box–Behnken design (BBD) model was employed to simulate and evaluate the influence of preparation conditions on the properties of CEMs. The regression model was validated via the analysis of variance (ANOVA) which exhibited a high reliability and accuracy of the results. Moreover, the experimental data have a good fit and high reproducibility with the predicted results according to the regression analysis. The embedding of MIL-101(Fe) nanoparticles contributed to the improvement of ion selective separation by forming hydrogen bonds with the polymer network in the membrane. The optimum synthesis parameters such as degree of sulfonation (DS), the content of SPES and NPHCs and the content of MIL-101(Fe) were acquired to be 30%, 85:15 and 2%, respectively, and the corresponding desalination rate of the CEMs improved to 136% while the energy consumption reduced to 90%. These results revealed that the RSM was a promising strategy for optimizing the preparation factors of CEMs and other similar multi-response optimization studies.

Triboelectric nanogenerators (TENGs) have emerged as a transformative technology for enabling intelligent and sustainable civil infrastructure by simultaneously harvesting ambient mechanical energy and providing self-powered sensing capabilities. Civil systems such as bridges, tunnels, roadways, railways, and marine structures are continuously exposed to low-frequency, irregular, and widely distributed mechanical excitations arising from traffic, wind, waves, and structural vibrations, yet these energy resources remain largely underutilized by conventional electromagnetic technologies. This review provides a comprehensive and infrastructure-oriented synthesis of recent advances in triboelectric nanogenerators, spanning working principles, material systems, environmental reliability, system-level energy harvesting strategies, and self-powered sensing applications relevant to real-world civil environments. Particular emphasis is placed on the interplay between triboelectric operating modes, material and interface engineering, environmental protection strategies, and advanced geometric designs that enable stable operation under humidity, temperature variation, mechanical fatigue, and corrosive conditions. Representative applications are systematically reviewed across ocean and wave energy harvesting, wind-driven systems, vehicle-induced roadway harvesting, bridge monitoring, tunnel and subsurface sensing, railway diagnostics, and marine environmental monitoring. In addition, emerging origami, kirigami, and bio-inspired architectures are discussed as powerful approaches to achieving multidirectional adaptability, motion amplification, and multifunctional performance. Finally, key challenges and future directions are outlined, including long-term field deployment, scalable manufacturing, hybrid energy systems, and integration with wireless communication, artificial intelligence, and digital twin frameworks. This review establishes a unified roadmap linking fundamental triboelectric design strategies to practical deployment pathways, positioning TENGs as a core enabling technology for next-generation self-powered, intelligent civil infrastructure systems.

In this study, by assuming a small bottom slope, asymptotic solutions were developed to discuss natural convection within rooted emergent vegetation in response to different heating and cooling mechanisms. Based upon the maximum water depth in comparison to the penetration depth of solar radiation, two scenarios in shallow and deep waters were examined. The temperature structures showed that isotherms in shallows are near vertical but become stable stratified layers (horizontal isotherms) in deep regions. In shallow regions, horizontal velocity profiles perform classic cubic shapes, while the horizontal velocity in deep regions is constant near the surface, and a local upslope flow occurs near the bottom. In shallow water, viscous effects are dominant to shape the velocity profiles, whereas vegetation drag becomes more important in deep regions. By using turbulent parameters, horizontal exchange flowrates and velocities predicted by the asymptotic solutions show good agreements with the existing measurements.

Tsunami-induced scour around coastal embankments and nearshore structures is a primary cause of structural instability and failure. However, the hydrodynamic mechanisms by which coastal vegetation mitigates this scour remain insufficiently understood. This study employs three-dimensional numerical simulations to investigate the influence of rigid and flexible vegetation on overflow-induced scour downstream of embankments and local scour around structures under tsunami-like inundation. The simulations were conducted using Ansys Fluent 2021R2, utilizing the Volume of Fluid (VOF) method to capture the free surface and the RNG k − ε turbulence model within the Reynolds-averaged Navier–Stokes (RANS) framework. Computational geometries were reconstructed from laboratory experiments, and the model’s reliability was validated against measured water surface profiles. The results demonstrated that vegetation significantly alters flow dynamics, velocity distributions, vortex structures, and both the magnitude and patterns of bed shear stress within scour holes. Specifically, in overflow-induced scour, vegetation suppresses scour intensity by inducing backwater effects, enhancing momentum diffusion, attenuating flow impingement on the bed, and reducing peak bed shear stress. Conversely, for local scour around structures, vegetation increases upstream water depth while intensifying downstream wake vortices, leading to scour hole elongation—particularly under dense and tall vegetation. These findings offer novel insights into the hydrodynamics of vegetation-induced scour mitigation and provide guidelines for optimizing vegetation configurations to enhance the tsunami resilience of coastal infrastructure.