In recent years, the production of municipal solid waste has constantly been increasing. Recycling is becoming more and more important, as it is the only way that we can have a clean and sustainable environment. Recycling, however, is a process that is not fully automated; large volumes of waste materials need to be processed manually. New and novel techniques have to be implemented in order to manage the increased volume of waste materials at recycling factories. In this paper, we propose a novel methodology that can identify common waste materials as they are being processed on a moving belt in waste collection facilities. An efficient waste material detection and classification system is proposed, which can be used in real integrated solid waste management systems. This system is based on a convolutional neural network and is trained using a custom dataset of images, taken on site from actual moving belts in waste collection facilities. The experimental results indicate that the proposed system can outperform existing algorithms found in the literature in real-world conditions, with 92.43% accuracy.

One of the important stages in the preparation of fuel for the smooth progress of combustion is to remove humidity from it. Natural resin, a natural product from Pinus nigra and Pinus halepensis were used in order to remove water residues from petroleum fuels. The mass of resin (P. nigra and P. halepensis) was mixed with diesel fuel and the humidity eliminated, 38% and 69% of diesel fuel also. The proposed method can be used in a simple fuel cleaning process using a metal mesh vessel consisted of the natural resin of P. nigra sample.

Eggshells are an inorganic waste, and their accumulation rate is increasing globally, complicating waste management. However, the European Union defines eggshells as low-risk material that can be recycled and reused safely in other applications. Their chemical composition renders them an attractive precursor of calcium phosphate materials (CaPs). Because of their remarkable biocompatibility and capacity for natural degradation, CaPs are frequently employed in biomedical engineering applications. In this research, the wet precipitation method was employed for fabricating CaP powder. Initially, the eggshells were processed into CaCO₃ powder and then reacted with HCl to obtain CaCl₂ (aq). This reacted with Na₂HPO₄ to obtain a precipitate that was filtered and dried. The precipitate in powder form underwent X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) analysis to evaluate its microstructure, and elemental and phase composition. The results indicated that the recovered powder was brushite.

The precise regulation of water content plays a pivotal role in determining several the critical properties of marine fuels, including combustion stability, corrosion resistance, and the mitigation of pollutant emissions. The present study introduces an innovative, additive-free technique for moisture extraction from Marine Gasoil (MGO) utilizing the hydrophilic polymer polyacrylamide, which leverages its polar amino groups to attract water molecules. This process facilitates the physical extraction of moisture without modifying the fuel’s composition, in contrast to traditional drying techniques or chemical additions. Experimental findings indicate a 34.6% decrease in water content in MGO (from 29.3 mg/kg to 19.15 mg/kg) and a 36.5% reduction in MGO–biodiesel blends (from 32.04 mg/kg to 20.34 mg/kg), accomplished within one hour of treatment. The scientific significance of this work lies in its discovery of polyacrylamide’s ability to retain moisture within a nonpolar fuel matrix—a phenomenon not previously investigated in maritime fuel applications. The findings highlight the potential for further research into polymer–fuel interactions and non-chemical strategies for fuel enhancement. Economically, the proposed technology reduces dependence on costly chemical additives and energy-intensive drying processes, while environmentally, it improves combustion efficiency and lowers emissions of hydrocarbons (HC), carbon monoxide (CO), and smoke. Overall, the results introduce a novel, sustainable, and practical process for improving maritime fuel quality, while supporting compliance with increasingly stringent regional and global environmental regulations.

The use of conventional fuels for heat, energy, or motion production is largely determined by the concentration of water in the fuel. Therefore, the knowledge of the moisture content is of particular importance for combustion efficiency. Specifically, the presence of water in fuels can cause corrosion, and during preheating the water vapor can cause extinguishing of the flame, while at low temperatures it can cause blockage of the network by ice that can be formed. In general, the presence of water can contribute to the development of organic and inorganic substrates that may contribute to fuel turbidity, a fact that is addressed by the addition of chemical additives. In the present work, the possibility of removing moisture from heating diesel fuel through the properties of ionic and non-ionic organic polymers, namely polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) and polyethylene oxide (PEO), was studied. The experimental data obtained by the addition of the polymers to the diesel showed that the fuel’s physicochemical properties were within the suitability limits, while the moisture content was decreased from 62 mg/kg to 50 mg/kg and 53 mg/kg, respectively, for PVA and PEO polymers. A mathematical expression of adsorption was used to simulate the experimental findings. In addition, the sulfur content was decreased from 941 mg/kg to 937 mg/kg when PVA was used. The methodology proposed for improving the physicochemical properties of heating diesel through organic polymers can optimize its combustion behavior to be more environmentally friendly.