Macadamia Nut Shell Research Articles

Investigation on cost-effective composites for CO2 adsorption from post-gasification residue and metal organic framework

Cost-effective CO2 adsorbents are gaining increasing attention as viable solutions for mitigating climate change. In this study, composites were synthesized by electrochemically combining the post-gasification residue of Macadamia nut shell with copper benzene-1,3,5-tricarboxylate (CuBTC). Among the different composites synthesized, the ratio of 1:1 between biochar and CuBTC (B 1:1) demonstrated the highest CO2 adsorption capacity. Under controlled laboratory conditions (0°C, 1 bar, without the influence of ambient moisture or CO2 diffusion limitations), B 1:1 achieved a CO2 adsorption capacity of 9.8 mmol/g, while under industrial-like conditions (25°C, 1 bar, taking into account the impact of ambient moisture and CO2 diffusion limitations within a bed of adsorbent), it reached 6.2 mmol/g. These values surpassed those reported for various advanced CO2 adsorbents investigated in previous studies. The superior performance of the B 1:1 composite can be attributed to the optimization of the number of active sites, porosity, and the preservation of the full physical and chemical surface properties of both parent materials. Furthermore, the composite exhibited a notable CO2/N2 selectivity and improved stability under moisture conditions. These favorable characteristics make B 1:1 a promising candidate for industrial applications.

Exploring the Prospects of Macadamia Nutshells for Bio-Synthetic Polymer Composites: A Review.

The global production of macadamia nuts has witnessed a significant increase, resulting in the accumulation of large quantities of discarded nutshells. These nutshells possess the properties of remarkable hardness and toughness, which are comparable to those of aluminum. Incorporating natural fillers to enhance the properties of composite materials for various applications, including light duty, structural, and semi-structural purposes, is a common practice. Given their inherent hardness and toughness, macadamia nutshells present an intriguing choice as fillers, provided that the manufacturing conditions are economically viable. With the urgent need to shift toward natural fillers and reduce reliance on synthetics, exploring macadamia nutshells as components of natural fiber composites becomes imperative. This review aims to comprehensively examine the existing body of knowledge on macadamia nutshells and their bio-synthetic polymer composites, highlighting key research findings, achievements, and identifying knowledge gaps. Furthermore, the article will outline prospective areas of focus for future research endeavors in this domain, aligning with the universal goal of minimizing synthetic materials.

The relative dominance of surface oxygen content over pore properties in controlling adsorption and retrograde behavior of gaseous toluene over microporous carbon

The adsorption potential of activated carbon (AC) derived from macadamia nut shells (product code of Procarb-900: namely, AC-P) has been investigated using gaseous toluene as the target pollutant. The powder AC-P with high-microporosity (96%) and oxygen content (5.62%) exhibited very high adsorption capacity (214 mg·g−1) and partition coefficient (PC: 25 mol·kg−1·Pa−1) against 100 ppm (10 Pa) toluene at 99% breakthrough levels (1 atm dry N2). The factors governing toluene adsorption were explored with respect to the key variables such as surface functional groups, pore size distribution, sorbent bed mass (50, 100, and 150 mg), and particle size (i.e., 0.212–0.6 mm (powder AC: PAC)) vs. 0.6–2.36 mm (granular AC: GAC)). Accordingly, the adsorption process was physical, mainly due to the non-polar interactions (i.e., π-π interactions) between the adsorbent and adsorbate molecules. The high affinity of AC-P at low breakthrough levels was obtained through a combination of smaller particle size (PAC) and larger adsorbent mass (i.e., 150 mg) with the appearance of a very pronounced retrograde phenomenon (e.g., at < 1% breakthrough level). As such, toluene adsorption appeared to be affected more sensitively by particle size and adsorbent mass (especially at low breakthrough levels) than by high microporosity. Most importantly, the oxygen content of AC emerges as one of the key factors governing the maximum capacity, as the changes in pore volume are not crucial to explain the observed adsorption patterns of toluene.

KCl-assisted activation of macadamia nut shell-derived carbon: Unveiling enhanced pore structure, adsorption and supercapacitor performance

A novel and efficient strategy, known as one-step pyrolysis with KCl-assisted K2C2O4 activation of biomass, was employed in the preparation of porous carbon derived from macadamia nut shells. Our aim was to analyze the alterations in material morphology and pore structure during the process of KCl-assisted activation. The addition of KCl during activation introduced additional mesopores and narrow micropores, resulting in a hierarchical pore structure. Compared to activation without KCl, the specific surface area increased by 50.7% and the pore content increased by 54.5%. We further investigated the evolution of the pore structure and activation mechanism during KCl-assisted activation. Among the tested samples, K3K5 showed the best adsorption performance with 6.48 and 4.11 mmol/g at 0 and 25 °C, respectively. In our study on the adsorption properties of CO2, we found that the narrow micropores are the primary factor influencing CO2 adsorption. Additionally, nonlinear fitting of adsorption isotherms indicated that the adsorption process followed a multilayer physisorption mechanism. We also explored the effects of KCl-assisted activation on the adsorption process. Furthermore, we evaluated the electrochemical properties of the activated carbon and determined that it functioned as a capacitance-controlled electric double-layer supercapacitor, with a specific capacitance of 279.3F/g at 0.5 A/g. We investigated the effects of KCl-assisted activation on specific capacitance, rate performance, and conductivity. This research provides valuable insights into the environmentally friendly synthesis of efficient CO2 adsorbents and energy storage materials.

Cationic UV-curing of isosorbide-based epoxy coating reinforced with macadamia nut shell powder

The scientific community is deeply investigating bio-based derivatives to reduce the consumption of fossil-based material and lessen the environmental impact. The development of bio-based plastic is one of the main challenges that needs to be overcome to achieve the goal of sustainability and green economy. In this view, we exploit the use of a bio-based monomer, isosorbide, for the production of bio-based resins which can be used in coating applications. The isosorbide was functionalized in a two-step reaction to introduce epoxy groups that subsequently were activated via UV radiation to trigger cross-linking to obtain dry films. The curing process was followed by means of real time analyses such as FT-IR, photo-DSC and photorheology. The bio-based resin showed the feasibility to be used in UV-cationic curing reaching conversion above 85 %. Furthermore, a bio-based filler from macadamia nutshell was selected as an additive to the formulation with the aim of increasing the surface hardness of the final coating. A significant increase in hardness was observed for coatings containing 30 wt% of macadamia nut shell powder (MAC). In this case, the hardness reached 72 Shore D, whereas the pristine bio-based epoxy resin achieved only 19 Shore D. Thermo-mechanical analysis of the final properties was carried out by means of DMTA, DSC and tensile test. Interestingly, the addition of MAC resulted in a noticeable increase of the Tg, from 24 °C for the pristine resin to 39 °C for the coating with 20 wt% of filler. Lastly, a morphology assessment was performed to investigate the size and shape of the filler and the interaction between the polymer matrix and the filler.

Reduction and Adsorption of Hexavalent Chromium by Iron Sulfide Loaded Biochar: Isotherms, Kinetics and Thermodynamics

AbstractThe removal of noxious Cr(VI) from water has gained worldwide attention. In this study, biochar derived from macadamia nut shells (MHP) was embedded with iron sulfide (FeS) nanoparticles produced through a solid‐phase reduction of pyrite. The MHP‐FeS composite was evaluated for the adsorption of Cr(VI) and its subsequent reduction to Cr(III). The scanning electron microscope images revealed that the particles were of irregular shape, while the energy dispersive spectroscopy results showed the existence of Fe, S, O, and C atoms. X‐ray diffraction peaks at 2=29.8°, 33.7°, 43.7°, and 53.1° were characteristic of the formation of FeS nanoparticles. A maximum Cr(VI) adsorption capacity of 4.95 mg/g was obtained at pH 3, 60 min, and 25 °C. The higher correlation coefficient (R2&gt;0.873) and lower residual standard error (RSE=1.43) values pointed to the adsorption process favoring Langmuir and pseudo‐second‐order models. As per thermodynamic reaction calculations, the remediation process was spontaneous and endothermic. With further optimization, this material could be a potential adsorbent and reductant for Cr(VI) in water.

Experimental investigation and optimization of the gasification parameters of macadamia nutshells in a batch-fed bubbling fluidized bed gasifier with air preheating

Gasification of biomass waste has a significant potential to reduce environmental impact and promote sustainability by producing syngas, which is considered as renewable energy. This work investigated the gasification of macadamia nutshells in air-preheated, batch-fed fluidized bed gasifier. The study conducted a parametric analysis to assess the effect of equivalence ratio (ER) and air temperature on the gasifier temperature profile and its performance based on gas composition, higher heating value (HHV), and gas yield. The research was conducted within the range of 0.15–0.35 for the ER and 25–825 °C for the air temperature. Multi-objective numerical optimization was conducted using response surface methodology (RSM). From the parametric study, a distinct temperature profile was observed along the gasifier height, with the peak temperature near the top of the fluidized bed section and the lowest temperature at the top of the gasifier. Air preheating mostly favored gasification temperature at the lower part of the gasifier and showed rare significance at the top. No improvement in gasifier performance was observed beyond an air temperature of 620 °C, which was identified as the ideal air-preheating temperature. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) revealed that the ER was the most influential parameter in the production of combustible gasses, syngas HHV and gas yield. Air preheating did not have a significant effect on methane production and gas yield. The most optimal values for ER and air temperature were obtained as 0.195 °C and 620 °C, respectively, producing optimal values of 9.54, 14.65%, 2.03, 4.02 MJ·Nm−3, and 1.82 Nm3·kg−1 for hydrogen, carbon monoxide, methane, HHV, and gas yield, respectively.

Synthesis and Characterization of MC/TiO2 NPs Nanocomposite for Removal of Pb2+ and Reuse of Spent Adsorbent for Blood Fingerprint Detection.

The removal of toxic heavy metals from wastewater through the use of novel adsorbents is expensive. The challenge arises after the heavy metal is removed by the adsorbent, and the fate of the adsorbent is not taken care of. This may create secondary pollution. The study aimed to prepare mesoporous carbon (MC) from macadamia nutshells coated with titanium dioxide nanoparticles (TiO2 NPs) using a hydrothermal method to remove Pb2+ and to test the effectiveness of reusing the lead-loaded spent adsorbent (Pb2+-MC/TiO2 NP nanocomposite) in blood fingerprint detection. The samples were characterized using SEM, which confirmed spherical and flower-like structures of the nanomaterials, whereas TEM confirmed a particle size of 5 nm. The presence of functional groups such as C and Ti and a crystalline size of 4 nm were confirmed by FTIR and XRD, respectively. The surface area of 1283.822 m2/g for the MC/TiO2 NP nanocomposite was examined by BET. The removal of Pb2+ at pH 4 and the dosage of 1.6 g/L with the highest percentage removal of 98% were analyzed by ICP-OES. The Langmuir isotherm model best fit the experimental data, and the maximum adsorption capacity of the MC/TiO2 NP nanocomposite was 168.919 mg/g. The adsorption followed the pseudo-second-order kinetic model. The ΔH° (-54.783) represented the exothermic nature, and ΔG° (-0.133 to -4.743) indicated that the adsorption process is spontaneous. In the blood fingerprint detection, the fingerprint details were more visible after applying the Pb2+-MC/TiO2 NP nanocomposite than before the application. The reuse application experiments showed that the Pb2+-MC/TiO2 NP nanocomposite might be a useful alternative material for blood fingerprint enhancement when applied on nonporous surfaces, eliminating secondary pollution.

Fabrication, Characterization and Removal of Methyl Orange, Chromium (Cr) and Lead (Pb) in Aqueous Solutions by Low‐Cost Clay/Macadamia Nutshell Powder Ceramic Filters

AbstractProducing drinking water from polluted water is expensive; thus, the fabrication of environmentally‐friendly and cost‐effective materials to treat polluted water is vital. A strategy involving the exploitation of waste resources to mitigate their impact on the environment has attracted special attention. This strategy is achievable by, among other things, developing materials including ceramic filters. In this study, natural clay, and macadamia nutshell powder were used to fabricate ceramic filters to remove methyl orange (MO), chromium (Cr), and lead (Pb) from aqueous solutions. The physicochemical characteristics of the fabricated filters were carried out and their ability to remove the pollutants was investigated. The filter with 20 wt% macadamia nutshell powder (M2) removed 92 %, 62 %, and 29 % of MO, Pb (II), and Cr (III), respectively. This was attributable to the high porosity of the filter as demonstrated by Brunauer‐Emmett‐Teller analysis. Furthermore, there was an increase on the removal of Cr (29.71 % to 84.5 %) in the presence of other competing co‐metals, however, a drop in Pb removed was observed (62.99 % to 38.67 %). Turbidity removal of up to 97.2 % was achieved using the M2 filter. The reported filter fabrication approach is facile, easy to replicate without special training, and environmentally friendly.

N-doped porous carbon derived from macadamia nut shell for CO2 adsorption

Selective adsorption and converting CO2 upon efficient solid-based adsorbents is critical for net-zero accomplishment. Herein, we develop an advisable strategy to prepare nitrogen-enriched porous carbons using the macadamia nutshell (MNS) as a carbon precursor, KOH as the activator and melamine as the nitrogen agent, respectively. The as-prepared porous carbons exhibit an enhanced specific surface area of 1731 m2/g and high microporosity with abundant nitrogen functional groups and structural defects. The CO2 uptake of 6.61 and 4.35 mmol g−1 were achieved at 0 and 25 °C, respectively, under 1 bar. More importantly, these biomass-based nitrogen-doped carbons possess various CO2 adsorption merits such as quick adsorption kinetics, high CO2/N2 selectivity, medium heat of adsorption, outstanding uninterrupted recyclability and good dynamic CO2 capture capacity. The present study provides an advanced protocol to design nitrogen-doped porous Carbon via a facile route toward the capture of CO2, which offers excellent progress in sustainable chemistry and engineering.

Kinetic modeling and optimization of process parameters for gasification of macadamia nutshells with air preheating: A combined use of Aspen Plus and response surface methodology (RSM)

This study used Aspen Plus process simulation for sensitivity analysis to identify the range of parameters for subsequent optimization using response surface methodology, to maximize syngas combustible gases and higher heating value (HHV) while minimizing tar. From the analysis of variance, equivalence ratio (ER) was the most significant parameter affecting H2 and CH4 production, HHV and tar content while pressure contributed the least. Air temperature influenced CO production the most while ER had the least effect. For a pressurized gasifier operating at 4 atm, optimal ER and air temperature was 0.16 and 575 °C respectively, producing syngas with HHV and tar content of 4.3 MJ/Nm3 and 23.68 g/Nm3 respectively. Optimal ER and air temperature for atmospheric pressure gasifier were 0.15 and 445 °C respectively, resulting in syngas with HHV and tar content of 4.14 MJ/Nm3 and 29.17 g/Nm3 respectively. The simulation results were in good agreement with the experimental data.

Revalorization of Macadamia nutshell residue as a filler in eco-friendly castor polyol-based polyurethane foam

Revalorization of Macadamia nutshell residue as a filler in eco-friendly castor polyol-based polyurethane foam

Adsorption of Zn2+ ion by macadamia nut shell biochar modified with carboxymethyl chitosan and potassium ferrate

A series of biochars and modified biochars were prepared by using macadamia nut shell (MNS) as raw material at different calcination temperatures and further using carboxymethyl chitosan (CMC) and K2FeO4 as the modifying agent, respectively. These biochar and modified biochars were used as adsorbents for adsorbing Zn2+ ion in aqueous solution. It is found that the adsorption behaviors of modified biochars BC-CMC and BC-K2FeO4 are consistent to the pseudo second-order kinetics model and the Langmuir equation. The maximum adsorption capacities for these adsorbents are increased in the following order: BC-CMC > BC-K2FeO4 > > BC-700. Among these biochars, BC-CMC exhibits the highest adsorption capacity of 97.09 mg/g, which may be mainly due to that BC-CMC has more amino, hydroxyl and carboxyl functional groups. The BC-CMC also exhibits better desorption performance and reusability. Furthermore, BC-CMC also shows higher adsorption capacity for Cu2+ and Pb2+. Based on the results, the adsorption mechanism of BC-CMC for Zn2+ was also proposed.

Lanthanum-functionalized lignocellulosic wastes for the arsenate and fluoride depollution of water: Antagonistic adsorption and interfacial interactions

The cleaning of water polluted by toxic geogenic compounds is challenging and demands novel, sustainable and low-cost adsorbents. To address this environmental problem, agricultural wastes functionalized with lanthanum have been studied for the depollution of arsenate and fluoride in aqueous solution. A simple and straightforward approach was utilized to anchor lanthanum on the surface of avocado seed, cauliflower stem, and macadamia nut shell wastes with the aim of effectively removing these toxic water pollutants and avoiding the microorganism growth on the biomass and its degradation during prolonged equipment operation. The adsorption mechanism using these modified biomass samples was endothermic and multi-ionic, involving up to two arsenate and three fluoride ions that can interact with the biomass surface functionalities. The simultaneous adsorption of these pollutants was antagonistic, and the co-anion concentration inhibited the adsorption of target geogenic pollutants. Overall, the fluoride adsorption properties of these modified lignocellulosic wastes were better than those for arsenate. The antibacterial activity of the lanthanum-modified biomass samples may enable for their use in packed-bed columns for long-term water treatment processes. The adsorption and antimicrobial properties of these functionalized biomass residues are promising for the implementation of efficient and economic processes for purifying water contaminated by arsenate and fluoride.

Potential use of residues from thermal conversion processes for CO2 capture

Economic development in many developing countries is leading to a significant increase in atmospheric CO2 in recent decades, exacerbating global climate change. One of the solutions being vigorously researched is the use of cheap and environmentally friendly CO2 adsorbents. In this study, solid residues from gasification of bagasse, and pyrolysis of macadamia nut shells were used for CO2 adsorption. The N2 adsorption/desorption results showed that the post-gasification residue was much more porous compared to the post-pyrolysis residue. The CO2 adsorption experiments were carried out in laboratory conditions (100 % CO2, 25 °C) and flue gas conditions (15 % CO2, 40 °C). The bagasse residue achieved a high and stable CO2 adsorption value at 2.3 mmol/g, 2.5 times more than that of macadamia nut shells residue. This result showed that residues from thermal conversion processes could be re-used as cheap and environmentally friendly materials for CO2 capture.

Route of biofuel production from macadamia nut shells: effect of parameters on the particles mixing index in fluidized beds

Pyrolysis of macadamia nut shells (MNS) in a fluidized bed reactor has excellent potential to produce bio-oil. High heat transfer rates and uniform temperature in the fluidized bed can be achieved due to effective gas-solid contact in the reactor. However, binary mixtures can lead to the segregation of particles, which negatively affects heat and mass transfer in such a reactor. Therefore, a 2³ statistical experimental design was used to assess the effects of parameters (i.e., air velocity, particle diameter ratio, and mass fraction of MNS) on the mixing index of the bed of MNS and sand. Among the analyzed factors, only DMNS/DS and V/VMF influenced the mixing index (Im) within a confidence interval of 95%. Based on statistical data analysis, an air velocity 20% above the minimum fluidization and particle diameter ratio (DMNS/DS) smaller than 3 results in uniform particle mixing in the bed (i.e., reaching ideal mixing index values). Moreover, the experimental results indicate that fluidized be used for biofuel production from Macadamia nut Shells.

A green strategy to prepare nitrogen-oxygen co-doped porous carbons from macadamia nut shells for post-combustion CO2 capture and supercapacitors

In the process of preparing heteroatom-doped carbon materials by activating biomass with conventional activators (e.g. KOH or NaOH), not only the activators are highly corrosive to the equipment, but also the heteroatom content of the prepared carbon materials is low, which limits their large-scale production. In this study, a green method was proposed to synthesize nitrogen-oxygen co-doped porous carbons in one step under air atmosphere. In the preparation process, macadamia nut shells, potassium chloride(KCl) and melamine were used as precursors, templating agents and nitrogen sources, respectively. KCl can be used as a flame retardant to allow pyrolysis in the gas stream. This process promotes pore formation and the introduction of oxygen species. The presence of KCl also reduced the loss of nitrogen during pyrolysis. The prepared porous carbon had a high nitrogen and oxygen content of 20.2 wt% and 23.3 wt%, respectively. The highest CO2 uptake of the samples was 1.39 mmol/g at 0.15 bar and 25 °C, with a selectivity of 39.33. In addition, the material exhibited an impressive specific capacitance of 254.5 F g−1 at 1 A g−1. The unique green preparation method is expected to provide new ideas for post-combustion CO2 capture and energy storage.

Photocatalytic treatment of real liquid effluent from hydrothermal carbonization of agricultural waste using metal doped TiO2/UV system

This study investigated treatment of real liquid effluent generated from hydrothermal carbonization (HTC) of macadamia nut shell by employing transition metals Cu, Ni, and Fe doped titanium dioxide (TiO2) photocatalysts. The anatase TiO2 based photocatalysts were prepared via sol-gel method, and calcined at 400 °C. The modification with metal dopants was performed via ultrasonic assisted incipient wetness impregnation method. The prepared photocatalysts were characterized using XRD, UV-Vis DRS, SEM-EDX, and N2 physisorption. The influence of metal dopants, types of TiO2 support, and initial pH of the wastewater on the photocatalytic degradation performance of total organic carbon (TOC) and chemical oxygen demand (COD) in the wastewater were investigated. The results revealed that Fe doped TiO2 exhibited the highest photocatalytic activity followed by Cu and Ni, respectively. Among all, Fe doped anatase TiO2 were the most promising catalyst as it performed the highest removal of 75.1% for TOC and 94.1% for COD after 1 h irradiation at pH 4, achieving the lowest TOC and COD concentration of 405.62 mg/L and 91.26 mg/L, respectively. The findings suggested that photocatalytic degradation of HTC liquid effluent could be a potential treatment before releasing the wastewater to the environment.

Adsorptive removal of BTEX compounds from wastewater using activated carbon derived from macadamia nut shells

In this study, adsorptive removal of benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene and xylenes (BTEX) from synthetic water using activated carbon adsorbent derived from macadamia nut shells was investigated. The surface functional groups of the synthesized adsorbents were assessed by Fourier transform infrared spectra. The specific surface area, pore size and pore volume at 77 K nitrogen adsorption, surface morphology, and the crystalline structure of the adsorbents were determined using Brunauer-Emmett-Teller, scanning electron microscopy and x-ray diffraction, respectively. Batch adsorption mode was used to evaluate the performance of the activated carbon. The stock solutions of synthetic wastewater were prepared by dissolving 100 mg/L of each of the BTEX compound into distilled water in a 250 mL volumetric flask. Effect of initial concentration of BTEX compounds, contact time, and mass of adsorbent on the removal of BTEX compounds from the synthetic wastewater was investigated. The macadamia nut shell–derived activated carbon (MAC) proved to be an effective adsorbent for BTEX compounds, with a large surface area of 405.56 m2/g. The exposure time to reach equilibrium for maximum removal of BTEX was observed to be 20 min. The adsorption capacity of the BTEX compounds by MAC followed the following adsorption order: benzene &gt; toluene &gt; ethylbenzene ˃ xylene.

Characterization of pyrolysis oil produced from organic and plastic wastes using an auger reactor

The objective of this study is to assess the suitability of pyrolysis oils produced from organic and plastic wastes for engine application. The assessment was performed by comparing the properties of the obtained pyrolysis oils with those of standard engine fuel. A fast pyrolysis process with an auger reactor was used to convert organic wastes such as beauty leaf fruit husk (BLFH), macadamia nutshell (MNS), and municipal green waste (MGW), and plastic waste such as waste high-density polythene (HDPE) into oil. Prior to pyrolysis experiments, all the wastes were characterized using a thermogravimetric and a CHNS analyser to perform proximate and ultimate analyses. The experiments were performed using varied temperatures ranging from 400 °C to 550 °C at intervals of 25 °C, a 3-minute residence time and 2-mm feedstock particle size. The maximum yield of pyrolysis oil was obtained at 475 °C for BLFH (42.75 %), at 500 °C for MNS (45.09 %) and MGW (44.72 %) and at 525 °C for HDPE (61.29 %). The chemical and physical properties of the pyrolysis oils were analysed using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), Gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC–MS), elemental and physicochemical properties analysis. The characterisation results reveal that the pyrolysis oils obtained from BLFH, MNS and MGW are enriched with phenolic, aromatic, and oxygenated compounds and oil obtained from HDPE contains mostly hydrocarbons and aromatics. The BLFH, MNS and MGW derived oils have higher viscosity and density and lower calorific value compared to that of HDPE derived oil. Due to these features, the oils obtained from organic wastes are not suitable for engine application without further refinement. HDPE derived oil, on the other hand, meets most of the criteria to be an engine fuel. However, a firm conclusion cannot be drawn until this oil has been tested in an engine.