Mixed-matrix nanocomposite (PES/CA/PVP) membranes were fabricated for water desalination by incorporating varying amount of titanium dioxide nanoparticles (TiO₂ NPs) ranging from 0 and 2 wt. %. Efficient dispersion of nanoparticles within polymeric membranes was achieved using the chemical precipitation method for uniform surface generation, and an asymmetric morphology was achieved via phase inversion method. Finally, membranes were characterized by Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, Thermo Gravimetric Analysis (TGA), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), porosity and contact angle analysis. FTIR confirmed chemical composition of membranes in terms of polymers (PES/CA/PVP) and TiO₂. TGA analysis confirmed an increase in thermal stability of membranes with the increase of TiO₂ nanoparticles loading. The addition of TiO₂ nanoparticles also resulted in an increase in porous structures due to an increase in mean pore size, as shown by SEM results. An increase in the hydrophilicity of the membranes was observed by increasing the concentration of TiO₂ nanoparticles. The present study investigated pristine and mixed-matrix nanocomposite NF membrane performance while filtering a NaCl salt solution at varying concentration range (from 1 to 4 g/Lit 6 bar). The prepared membranes demonstrated significant improvement in water permeability and hydrophilicity. Further, to optimize the water flux and salt rejection, the concentration of Polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) was optimized along with TiO₂ nanoparticles. Both the water flux and salt rejection of the fabricated membranes were observed to increase with an increase inTiO₂ nanoparticles to 2 wt. % loading with optimized PVP concentration, which demonstrated the improved desalination performance of resultant membranes.

Algaecides are chemicals that cause serious health problems. Conventional paints contain algaecides to improve the algae resistance on the paint film. Present research has suggested an environment-friendly paint formulation that focuses on developing algae resistance without having algaecides. In this research, algae growth on newly developed paint is modeled by incorporating dirt resistance of paint and natural phenomena including humidity, temperature, and time, respectively. The fitted Model revealed explained variation of 59.65% in the average algae growth, of which, dirt resistance, humidity, temperature, and some of their interactions play significant role in this variation. The model suggests that the proposed newly developed paint without algaecides is more resistant to algae growth and significantly decreased the average algae growth rate by 0.53% as compared to conventional paints. Keeping the effect of all other factors constant, if dirt resistance of paint (D_c value) increases by one percent, average algae growth decreases by 12.98%; when temperature increases by 1 °C, average algae growth decreases by 22.4%; a positive unit change in the joint linear effect of dirt resistance, temperature, and humidity caused a decrease in average algae growth by 0.0031%. It was also observed that the individual effect of the humidity variable was inversely related with average algae growth. However, the combination of humidity and temperature, humidity and dirt resistance, humidity and time, and the quadratic effect of humidity were found to increase the average algae growth rate. The cubic effect of temperature variable by one degree centigrade resulted in decrease of average algae growth by 0.000907%.

A highly dirt-resistant paint for building façades without chemicals harmful to nature and the environment would resolve the unattractive disfigurement of building walls caused by dirt. The current ranking of Pakistan in terms of air pollution is 139th. A set of dirt-resistant paint formulae was constructed with the aid of computer programming. From this set, the best dirt-resistant paint formula was explored and identified. The final determination of the optimum formulation was based on statistically planned experiments conducted in the laboratory and in a natural environment. In order to achieve high-quality results, the best available laboratory equipment were used. The results obtained were analyzed and conclusions were drawn using appropriate statistical techniques. The procedure started with the selection of appropriate raw materials and generation of a target population of 543,143 paint formulations by adopting Basic Language computer programming. The average pigment volume concentration (PVC) percentage was computed using theory and found to be 54.98% for the target population paint formulations, verifying the literature results. Experimentation and statistical analysis were performed to compare the classical conventional agitator with the latest lab equipment such as a nano mill, and it was concluded that the nano mill performs better on average than the conventional agitator in the preparation of paint formulations. Hence, the sample of paint formulations was prepared on a nano mill and tested in the laboratory using advanced available technology for the analysis and comparison of paint properties to determine the best paint formulation. The results were analyzed using the Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) technique, and it was concluded that the newly developed paint has the highest dirt resistance on average. The final selected formula, No. 50 (the newly developed paint), was compared with the three best conventional paints available in the Pakistan market in a natural environment for a period of almost one year. A regression model was also constructed to study the effect of environmental factors like time, temperature, and humidity on the dirt resistance of paints. It was found that the newly developed paint formulation is the most environmentally friendly. It performs equally well as one conventional paint and has higher dirt resistance than two other conventional paint formulations containing harmful chemicals. The regression model of dirt resistance involving variables including time, temperature, and humidity shows that these factors significantly affect the dirt resistance of a given paint at a 5% level of significance. For a given paint, 95.34% of the variation in the dirt resistance is due to and explained by the given factors. The regression model is useful for predicting the average dirt resistance of a given paint with a certain level of confidence. The project exemplifies the work of applied research from conceptualization to successful commercialization in the paint industry.

Ionic liquids are regarded as green solvents and found very effective in the pretreatment of biomass and spent wastes. However, the high cost of ionic liquids is a major worry. In this concern, regeneration could be a feasible solution. In this study, the pretreatment performance of fresh and regenerated ionic liquid (tributyl methylammonium chloride) ([N₁₄₄₄] [Cl])) with respect to their thermal behavior was investigated. It was found that fresh and regenerated ionic liquids improved the volatility of Spent coffee ground from 8.53 to 10.69 and 10.62, respectively, and heating values from 17.53 MJ/kg to 17.62 MJ/Kg and 17.71 MJ/kg, respectively. The reactivity for untreated Spent coffee ground (0.024% min⁻¹°C⁻¹) was improved significantly after ionic liquid treatment (0.047% min⁻¹°C⁻¹). The results suggest that the regeneration of ionic liquids could favor the pretreatment of spent wastes that will ultimately lead to an economical industrial operation.

Removal of heavy metal ions (HMI) from water streams is desirable due to their toxic and carcinogenic effects. Therefore, this study was conducted to prepare a low cost adsorbent in the form of non-activated carbon (NAC) and activated carbon (AC) using rice husk, a local bio-waste material. Activation of material was performed by base leaching, chemical activation using ZnCl2, followed by acid washing. The initial and final concentrations of HMI in water were measured using Atomic Absorption Spectroscopy. Volatile matter, ash, moisture and surface area of the prepared material were measured using ASTM methods E 897- 88 R04, E 830 - 87 R04, E 949 - 88 R04 and D 1050 - 1 respectively. An enhancement factor was used to evaluate the activating effect of the adsorbent. Maximum % age removal of HMI was measured as 69.0, 64.0, 62.0 and 56% for Ni, Cd, Zn and Pb respectively using NAC. However, by using AC, a significant increase in the %age removal efficiency of HMI was observed and measured as 99.0, 95.5, 93.0 and 89% for Ni, Cd, Zn and Pb respectively. The results showed that AC derived from waste biomass is a simple, ecological and cost-effective approach to remove bulk of metal ions from water and wastewater.