Maritime pine, scientifically known as Pinus pinaster, holds a vital role in Iberian Peninsula forests, primarily as a source of wood for panels, paper, and cellulose production. Recently, there has been a growing interest in utilising agroforestry by-products to yield valuable chemicals for applications in various sectors, including the food, pharmaceutical, and bioenergy industries. This study aimed to assess the value of the primary by-product of Pinus pinaster from the Minho region of northwestern Portugal, i.e., the bark. The research extensively examined the bark’s chemical and thermal characteristics, including ash content, extractives, lignin, cellulose, hemicellulose, fatty acids, and mineral composition. Additionally, various analytical techniques like FTIR, SEM, DSC, DTG, and XRD were used to observe chemical structure differences. The results reveal that the Pinus pinaster bark primarily consists of lignin (51.15%) and holocellulose (46.09%), with extractives mainly soluble in toluene–ethanol, followed by water, and a small amount of them are soluble in ethanol. The bark contained around 0.44% ash, and heavy metals such as Cd and Pb were not found. During degradation, Pinus pinaster experienced a 10% mass loss at 140 °C. In terms of crystallinity, holocellulose and cellulose showed similar percentages at approximately 25.5%, while α-cellulose displayed the highest crystallinity index at 41%.

Massive testing to detect SARS-CoV-2 is an imperious need in times of epidemic but also presents challenges in terms of its concretization. The use of saliva as an alternative to nasopharyngeal swabs (NPS) has advantages, being more friendly to the patient and not requiring trained health workers, so much needed in other functions.

Utilizing deep eutectic solvents (DESs) combined with microwave-assisted extraction (MAE) provides a sustainable method for extracting bioactive compounds from the macroalgae Ascophyllum nodosum and Laminaria hyperborea. Two DES formulations, choline chloride/lactic acid (ChCl/LA) and sodium acetate/lactic acid (AcNa/LA), were evaluated under varying extraction conditions. For L. hyperborea, ChCl/LA at 150 °C for 10 min yielded a total phenolic content (TPC) of 15.34 mg GAE/g DW, with antioxidant activities measured by DPPH (34.55 mg TE/g DW) and ABTS (27.06 mg TE/g DW). Extending the extraction to 20 min at 130 °C increased the TPC to 19.12 mg GAE/g DW. A. nodosum exhibited higher bioactivity, with the TPC reaching 47.51 mg GAE/g DW under the same conditions. High-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) identified significant phenolics such as 3,4-dihydroxybenzoic acid (678.05 µg/g DW) and vanillin (6718.5 µg/g DW). Antimicrobial assays revealed strong inhibition (zones > 20 mm) against Clostridium perfringens, moderate activity against Staphylococcus aureus, and selective activity against Escherichia coli. FT-IR confirmed the presence of phenolics, polysaccharides, and lipids. Thermal and structural characterization revealed that A. nodosum residue showed an amorphous structure, while L. hyperborea retained crystallinity with decomposition profiles indicating potential bioenergy potential. SEM images revealed significant cell wall disruption correlating with extraction efficiency. These results demonstrate DES–MAE as an effective, green strategy for producing high-value algal extracts and valorizing residual biomass for biotechnological applications.

The spatial patterns of chlorophyll a and bacteria were assessed in a temperate Atlantic tidal estuary during seasonal surveys, as well as in consecutive summer spring and neap tides. A box model approach was used to better understand spatial and temporal dynamics of these key estuarine descriptors. The Lima estuary (NW Portugal) was divided into boxes controlled by salinity and freshwater discharge and balance equations were derived for each variable, enabling the calculation of horizontal and vertical fluxes of plankton and, therefore, production or consumption rates. Chlorophyll a tended to burst within the oligohaline zone, whereas higher counts of bacteria were found in the mesohaline stretch. Whenever the water column was stratified, similar tide-independent trends were found for chlorophyll a and bacterial fluxes, with net growth in the upper less saline boxes, and consumption beneath the halocline. In the non-stratified upper estuary, other controls emerged for chlorophyll a and bacteria, such as nitrogen and carbon inputs, respectively. The presented results show that, while tidal hydrodynamics influenced plankton variability, production/consumption rates resulted from the interaction of additional factors, namely estuarine geomorphological characteristics and nutrient inputs. In complex estuarine systems, the rather simple box model approach remains a useful tool in the task of understanding the coupling between hydrodynamics and the behavior of plankton, emerging as a contribution toward the management of estuarine systems.

This study investigates the potential of Pinus pinaster subsp. atlantica bark, a forestry by-product from northern Portugal, as a source of phenolic compounds with strong antioxidant properties. Microwave-assisted extraction (MAE) was used to optimize recovery, assessing the effects of solvent composition (water, ethanol, and 50:50 water–ethanol), extraction time (15 or 30 min), and temperature (90, 110, or 130 °C) using a one-variable-at-a-time approach. High-Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) profiling characterized the polyphenol composition. The results showed that solvent choice strongly influenced extract composition and bioactivity, with hydroethanolic and ethanolic extracts exhibiting the highest antioxidant activities in DPPH, ABTS, and ORAC assays. Optimal conditions—50:50 water–ethanol, 130 °C, 15 min—yielded 11.13% (w/w) extract, 3.10 mg GAE/mL total phenolics, and 2.01 mg CE/mL condensed tannins, comparable to commercial extracts such as Pycnogenol^®. MAE proved effective, rapid, and solvent-efficient, enhancing phenolic recovery without degrading extract quality. These findings highlight the potential of P. pinaster bark extracts for biomedical, nutraceutical, and cosmetic applications, supporting the sustainable valorization of forestry residues and aligning with circular economy principles.

In order to obtain solutions to the coal mining region demand in southern Brazil for high-performance and low-cost technosols within a concept of mineral circularity and sustainable development of the coal sector, this study aims to evaluate the functional feasibility of the combined use of a residual fraction of coal tailing, waste from the rice and poultry agro-industry, as well as the cellulose industry, as raw materials for technosol development. Characterizations (XRF, LOI, ICP-OES, pH, XRD, and sulfur forms) were performed to adjust the waste proportions used in the constructed soil, as defined based on the clay content of the coal tailing, the organic carbon content of the poultry litter, and technical recommendations for the use of synthetic gypsum in agricultural soils. Based on the characterizations of the residues, a greenhouse experiment was designed, consisting of four technosol formulations (T1–T4). Initially, an ecotoxicity test was conducted with the treatments in contact with Allium cepa L. (onion) to determine the degree of technosol toxicity. Field tests were then carried out, which were replicated three times in a completely randomized block design, with the germination and growth of Lactuca sativa L. (crisp lettuce) as a bioindicator. The fertility of the treatments was analyzed eight weeks after the establishment of the experiment and compared to standard values for agricultural soils. The characterization performed with the individual wastes demonstrated the potential for application in technosols according to current regulations. The ecotoxicity tests showed that the soil was not toxic to the plant in any of the treatments studied. The field experiment demonstrated no difference in germination between the treatments. However, the development of lettuce seedlings occurred only in technosol formulations T2 and T3, highlighting the potential of the studied residues for the construction of technosols.