This study presents a comprehensive experimental evaluation of walnut shell (WS) aggregates in concrete, considering not only strength properties but also stress-strain behavior, elastic characteristics, density reduction, and damage response, which have received limited attention in previous studies. Walnut shell aggregates were used as partial replacements for both fine (FWS) and coarse (CWS) natural aggregates at substitution levels of 5-25%. The results showed that low replacement levels (10% FWS and 5% CWS) produced compressive and tensile strengths comparable to or slightly higher than those of conventional concrete, whereas higher replacement levels reduced strength but improved deformability and ductility, as indicated by broader stress-strain curves and increased Poisson's ratios. The modulus of elasticity decreased with increasing walnut shell content and exhibited a nonlinear trend with compressive strength, while dry density reductions of up to 250kg/m³ corresponded to approximately 10% dead-load savings. Microstructural correlations based on SEM analysis and the high water absorption of the bio-aggregates provided a preliminary analytical basis for assessing the behavior of walnut shell-incorporated green concrete within the investigated dataset. Low replacement levels of walnut shell aggregates (5% CWS and 10% FWS) provided the most favorable balance between strength, deformability, and density reduction. These findings suggest that walnut shell aggregates may be promising for selected lightweight and non-structural concrete applications, while any broader structural use remains exploratory and conditional upon future long-term durability validation.

Red Clover Isoflavones plus Urea for Partial Soybean Meal Substitution: Implications for Productivity and Nitrogen Utilization in Holstein cows.

This study investigates the feasibility of using biochar derived from pyrolyzed Posidonia oceanica leaves (PBC) as a partial cement replacement for sustainable mortar production. The research addresses two critical challenges simultaneously: valorization of marine biomass waste and reduction of the carbon footprint associated with Portland cement. Biochar produced at 400°C was incorporated at replacement levels of 1-6% by weight of cement, and the resulting mortars were evaluated for fresh properties, mechanical performance, durability, microstructure, and environmental impact. Workability decreased with increasing PBC content, while compressive strength at 28days improved at low replacement levels, reaching an optimum at 3% with 8.71% strength increase relative to the control mixture. Water absorption decreased marginally from 5.38% in the control to 5.31% at optimal PBC content, but increased progressively at higher replacement levels, reaching up to 7.50%, indicating improved matrix compactness. Higher dosages resulted in strength reduction due to increased porosity and interfacial defects. Thermal resistance testing showed stability of PBC3 specimens up to 600°C, whereas higher contents led to structural degradation, showing microcracking and mass loss exceeding 7%. Microstructural analysis confirmed pore refinement at low dosages and matrix disruption at higher contents. Embodied carbon decreased linearly with increasing PBC content, achieving a 5.3% reduction at 6% replacement. One-way ANOVA confirmed that PBC dosage significantly influenced the fresh, mechanical, and durability properties of the mortar (p < 0.05). Overall, 3% PBC was identified as the optimal dosage balancing mechanical performance, durability, and sustainability. The findings position biochar as a sustainable solution for lowering cement consumption and transforming PBC waste into value-added construction materials.

Lactic-fermented tomato ingredient as a multifunctional strategy to improve microbial stability and sensory attributes in KCl-reduced‑sodium pork burgers.

The growing demand for low-carbon construction materials has intensified research on supplementary cementitious materials (SCMs) as partial replacements for ordinary Portland Cement (OPC). While several agricultural ashes such as rice husk ash and sugarcane bagasse ash have been extensively studied, limited investigations have comprehensively examined the microstructural behavior and durability performance of sunflower husk ash (SHA) in self-compacting concrete (SCC). Addressing this research gap, the present study evaluates the performance of SCC incorporating SHA as an environmentally sustainable SHA demonstrates potential as a supplementary cementitious material that may contribute to cement reduction at replacement levels of 0%, 5%, 10%, 15%, 20%, and 25%. Fresh properties were assessed using slump flow, T₅₀ time, and V-funnel tests. Mechanical performance was evaluated through compressive, split tensile, and flexural strength tests at 7 and 28days. Durability performance was determined using water absorption and rapid chloride penetration tests (RCPT). Microstructural characterization was conducted using SEM, EDAX, FTIR, and XRD analyses to investigate phase development and hydration mechanisms. The results indicate that 20% SHA replacement yields the highest performance among the tested mixes balance of workability, strength, and durability, achieving a 28-day compressive strength of 53.0MPa, split tensile strength of 4.7MPa, and flexural strength of 6.5MPa, along with reduced water absorption and chloride ion permeability. Beyond 20% replacement, performance declined due to dilution of cementitious phases. The findings establish SHA as a viable supplementary cementitious material for high-performance SCC, offering a sustainable pathway for reducing OPC consumption, particularly in regions with abundant sunflower waste.

This study examined the constituents and evaluated the effects of incorporating a pulp industry residue (dregs) on the physical and mechanical properties of mortar. The properties of the mortar constituents were evaluated using thermogravimetry-differential scanning calorimetry (TG-DSC), energy-dispersive spectroscopy (EDS), X-ray Fluorescence spectroscopy (XRF), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and tests specified in standards NBR 16605 (2017), NBR 11579 (2013), and NM 18 (2012). The hardened mortar was evaluated through mechanical testing (NBR 7215 2019), water absorption testing (NBR 9778 2005), and mercury intrusion porosimetry. XRD data from dregs treated at different temperatures were analyzed using the Rietveld refinement method. The specific gravities of the cement, dregs, and sand were 3.13, 2.58 and 2.62g/cm3, respectively. The main chemical elements detected in the dregs (> 1 atom%) were Ca, Mg, Mn, Si, Na, S, and Al. Thermal analysis revealed two endothermic events: the evaporation of sulfur-containing compounds and the decomposition of calcium magnesium carbonate. Lattice parameters were obtained for the Ca0.87Mg0.13(CO3)2 phase, observed in the dregs treated at 100 and 500°C, and for the CaO and MgO phases, observed after treatment at 750°C. To evaluate compressive strength, water absorption, and porosity, mortars were prepared under three distinct conditions: one without dregs; four with dregs added to the mixture, keeping the cement and sand contents constant; and four with dregs as a partial replacement for Portland cement, keeping the sand content constant. Compressive strength decreases with increasing dregs content, with a more pronounced reduction when Portland cement is replaced by dregs than when dregs are added. Incorporating 40 wt% dregs reduced compressive strength by 73% under the Substitution condition and 52% under the Addition condition, relative to the reference mortar without dregs. This reduction in compressive strength is associated with increased water absorption and porosity as the dregs content increases.

Comparative evidence on how different supplementary cementitious materials affect freeze-thaw performance and air-void system characteristics of self-compacting concrete (SCC) under consistent mixture conditions remains limited. This study provides a direct comparative assessment of ground granulated blast-furnace slag (GGBFS), fly ash (FA), and limestone powder (LM) as partial cement replacements in SCC within a unified mix-design framework. SCC mixtures incorporating 15% and 30% of GGBFS, FA, or LM were evaluated for fresh properties (slump flow, V-funnel, L-box) and for mechanical performance (compressive and splitting tensile strength, modulus of elasticity) at 28, 56, and 90 days. Freeze-thaw performance was evaluated after 150 cycles, while the hardened air-void system was characterized using total air content (A), micro-air content (A300), and spacing factor (L). Selected mixtures were examined by SEM/EDS and complemented by a limited quantitative SEM texture assessment at fixed magnification to support microstructural interpretation. Statistical analysis (two-way ANOVA and Tukey HSD) and regression-based relationships were used to strengthen the comparison. The results show that FA primarily improved flowability, reaching a slump flow of 740mm at 30% replacement, whereas GGBFS provided the most favorable balance between late-age mechanical performance and freeze-thaw resistance, achieving 69MPa compressive strength at 90 days and only 0.2% mass loss and 1.0% strength loss after F150 at 30% replacement. LM contributed to stabilizing the protective air-void network, while the lowest spacing factor (L = 0.11mm) was observed for GGBFS30 and LM30. Importantly, freeze-thaw strength loss was more strongly associated with spacing factor L than with total air content, highlighting void spacing as a practical durability-oriented predictor for SCC incorporating SCMs. Overall, the findings support clinker reduction strategies while maintaining durable SCC performance.

When disposed of in landfills, printed circuit boards (PCBs) release hazardous substances. Furthermore, the global sand crisis has gained considerable attention among environmentalists over the last few years, and the United Nations has proposed some initiatives to reduce the use of river sand. Despite the existence of several promising sustainable alternatives to alluvial sand, there has been little effort to implement those initiatives in the construction industry. This study explores the use of recycled non-metallic PCB (NM-PCB) as a partial replacement for fine aggregate in mortar, combined with silica fume and marble powder. No data on their combined effects on mortar properties has been discovered yet which restricted large-scale application of NM-PCB in the construction industry. Therefore, this study investigates the potential of machine learning (ML) to predict the compressive strength (CS) of mortar containing NM-PCB, silica fume, and marble powder, as CS is the most critical property of concrete. A comprehensive experimental dataset of 270 samples was developed with eight (8) input variables, with compressive strength as the output. Due to the significant pozzolanic activity of silica fume and the micro filler effect of marble powder, their optimal dosage in mortar was determined using machine learning. The highest Compressive Strength (CS) achieved was 17.6MPa in a mix containing 5% SF, 5% MP and 3% NM-PCB. Linear Regression, Random Forest, and Extreme Gradient Boosting models were applied to predict compressive strength, with RF and XGB optimized via grid search and validated using k-fold cross-validation. Model performance was evaluated using R², RMSE, MAE, and MAPE. The Random Forest model was the most accurate, achieving an R² of 0.96, while XGBoost also performed well with R² = 0.90. SHAP analysis showed that silica fume (7-12kg/m³) and NM-PCB (13-22kg/m³) enhance compressive strength when combined with over 360kg/m³ of cement. ICE and PDP analyses highlighted curing age as the most influential factor, with silica fume, water-cement ratio, and superplasticizer dosage also significantly affecting strength. A graphical user interface was developed as a decision-support tool for researchers and preliminary mix design optimization for practitioners and externally validated with experimental results demonstrating that recycling NM-PCB in concrete promotes sustainable construction.

Dairy livestock systems in the Colombian highlands are characterized by grass monoculture, high fertilization, concentrate supplementation, and predominantly Holstein cows. Limited pasture diversity and inadequate management have negatively affected soil and forage quality, increasing dependence on fertilizers and concentrates, raising production cost and reducing profitability. Intensive silvopastoral systems (ISS) represent an agroecological alternative by integrating grasses with trees and shrubs and strategic supplementation to improve production efficiency. Yacon (S. sonchifolius), a native Andean Asteraceae, produces high yields of leaves, steams and tubers, making this plant a valuable local resource for supplementation in ISS. This study evaluated milk production, principal milk composition, somatic cell count, and production cost of Holstein cows in an ISS with Mexican sunflower (T. diversifolia) and yacon silage as partial replacement for concentrated, compared to Kikuyu grass monoculture supplemented with concentrate. A Latin square crossover design (AB/BA) was used with two evaluation periods, two treatments, and two groups of four cows. Treatments were SPI (ISS + yacon) and MON (kikuyu monoculture). Response variables included total dry matter intake, milk yield, principal milk composition, somatic cells, feed efficiency, energy efficiency, and a descriptive economic analysis. Milk yield or principal composition did not differ between treatments, except for somatic cells (p < 0.05), which were lower in SPI. An economic simulation for 50 cows showed annual feed cost savings of USD 4,937.13 with SPI. Results indicate that ISS supplemented with yacon silage can reduce production costs while maintaining milk performance and reducing somatic cell count in dairy systems of the Colombian highlands.

Effective postoperative pain management is essential for optimizing recovery after partial hip replacement surgery, particularly in elderly patients with multiple comorbidities. The quadroiliac plane block (QIPB) is a recently described ultrasound-guided fascial plane block that targets the fascial plane beneath the quadratus lumborum muscle at the inner iliac crest, with potential to provide extensive periarticular coverage. Thirty adult patients were randomized to receive either a unilateral QIPB (40 mL 0.25% bupivacaine) or no block following surgery under spinal anesthesia. All patients received standardized multimodal analgesia including IV fentanyl PCA and paracetamol. The primary outcome was total fentanyl consumption in the first 24 hours. Secondary outcomes included pain scores at 1, 6, 12, and 24 hours; rescue analgesia requirements; postoperative nausea and vomiting (PONV); dermatomal spread; and Quality of Recovery-15 (QoR-15) scores. Median fentanyl consumption was significantly lower in the block group (100 µg [IQR 80-120]) compared to control (300 µg [IQR 270-360]; P<0.001). NRS pain scores were significantly lower at 1, 6, and 12 hours (P<0.01), but not at 24 hours. QoR-15 scores were higher and PONV and rescue analgesia rates were lower in the block group. Dermatomal mapping showed consistent L1-L5 coverage, with cranial extension to T10-T12 and caudal spread to S1-S2 in most patients. No block-related complications were observed. QIPB provides reliable and opioid-sparing analgesia with extensive sensory coverage, representing a safe and effective regional technique to optimize recovery after partial hip replacement surgery.

The project focuses on enhancing the performance of Fibre Reinforced Concrete (FRC) through the partial replacement of cement with industrial by-products and the inclusion of steel fibres. Cement production is a major source of CO₂ emissions, necessitating the exploration of sustainable alternatives. This study utilizes Fly Ash and Silica Fume as partial cement replacements to improve the long-term strength and durability of concrete, while incorporating steel fibres to enhance it tensile strength, ductility, and crack resistance. The concrete mixes will be tested for compressive strength, split tensile strength, and flexural strength at 7, 14, and 28 days. A comparison of strength gain over these periods will be made to determine the optimum mix proportion that balances sustainability and mechanical performance. The scope includes testing various percentages of cement replacement and steel fibre volumes to formulate a high-performance, eco-friendly concrete mix.

Concrete is the mixture of various materials like coarse aggregate, fine aggregate, cement &amp; water, each of them is mixed in various proportions to achieve specific strength. The fine and coarse aggregates are the main ingredients of concrete as the filler materials. As coarse aggregates are non renewable resources, scarcity of these materials have been increased in recent years. Therefore, it is essential to search for other materials, which can be used as an alternative to fine and coarse aggregate. Now days, waste of glasses are been increasing ,and the powder form of waste glass(GP) can be used as a partial replacement for the fine aggregates(FA), which can cause increase in the strength of concrete due to the proper alkali aggregate reaction up to 10% replacement. Brick ballast (BB) can be used as coarse aggregate partially in concrete. Cement being the most important material plays an important role in the manufacturing of concrete. The high cost of conventional construction materials is a dominating factor effecting constructions cost. This is necessity research for some new kind of alternative materials in the constructions field. Waste glass in the form of fine aggregate and brick ballast as coarse aggregate can be used. The proportion of the mineral and mixtures is applied in testing cubes for compression strength. This project briefly discusses the effects of addition of glass powder &amp; brick ballast on the properties of mortar concrete mix of M25 at 14, and 28 days for concrete mix with brick ballast as 10%, 20%, 30%, 40%, &amp; 50% of the weight coarse aggregate. Combination of these glass powder &amp; brick ballast will gain the strength of nominal mix. Cubes of size 150x150x150 mm are constructed to check the compressive strength. The concrete made by the mixture glass powder &amp; brick ballast is placed in the curing tank for 14 days and 28days for curing. The concrete is tested according to Indian standard specification to identify the compressive strength. This new technology will provide new solution for the disposal of glass sheet waste as well as the damaged or half burned bricks from the kiln

Indigenous resources for natural and artificial mineral admixtures with high pozzolanic reactivity have been employed in many countries around the world. Extensive studies have been conducted for this purpose. With the use of agricultural waste residue, apart from improving properties of concrete, main benefits come from saving natural resources and energy, as well as protecting the environment by using these mineral admixtures. Sugarcane bagasse (SCB) is a voluminous by- product in the sugar mills when juice is extracted from the cane. The burning of bagasse leaves bagasse ash (BA) as a waste. Bagasse ash can be used as a cement replacement material because of its pozzolanic property. Replacing cement with (10-20% by weight) bagasse ash produces a concrete mix. Metakaolin is a pozzolanic material widely used in partial replacement of cement (5–20% by weight) which is economical and its pozzolonic action increases the strength and durability properties. From the experiments it is obtained that partial replacement of bagasse ash with cement increases strength up to 15 %. In this paper a green technology is evolving to replace maximum amount of cement by bagasse ash and metakaolin. So by fixing 20% of bagasse ash as constant, metakaoiln can be blended to the concrete mix to increase the strength and durability by varying percentage of 0, 5, 10, 15, and 20. The tests conducted are compressive strength test,split tensile strength test,flexural strength test and durability tests such as chloride attack and sulphate attack.

Medical waste incineration ash (MWIA) is an increasingly important solid-waste residue, yet it is often disposed of without stabilization, creating potential environmental risks. This study evaluates the feasibility of using the MWIA investigated here as a partial cement replacement (0-40% by mass, at 10% intervals) in three concrete grades (M25, M30, and M35). MWIA was collected from the CCC incinerator under lower temperature (600-700°C), oven-dried, ground, and sieved to <75 μm. Mechanical performance was assessed using Compressive and Splitting Tensile Strengths at 7, 28, and 56 days, while durability-related properties were evaluated using Ultrasonic Pulse Velocity (UPV), Fresh Density, Water Absorption, Void Content, and Rapid Chloride Permeability Test (RCPT). Environmental safety was assessed through total heavy-metal inventory by aqua regia digestion, semi-dynamic tank leaching of stabilized mortar and pH-controlled batch leaching of raw ash and demolished mortar. XRF showed that the MWIA investigated in this study is CaO-rich (CaO 40.25%) with an oxide sum of SiO2, Al2O3 and Fe2O3 slightly below the ASTM C618 criteria for conventional pozzolans. Across all grades, 10% MWIA provided the most balanced performance: at 56 days, strength recovered to approximately 95-98% of the control mixes. The average 56-day to 28-day strength gain ratio was also highest at 10% MWIA, with a value of 1.218. UPV remained above 3500 m/s, and the RCPT charge passed decreased by approximately 4.82-14.46% relative to the OPC mixes for different grades. Replacement levels of ≥20% produced persistent strength reductions and increased porosity-related indicators. Leaching results showed that cement-based stabilization greatly reduced heavy metal release. The cumulative leached fraction remained below 2% of the total metal inventory at 10% replacement and stayed within about 3-6% even at 40% replacement. These results suggest that low-dose MWIA use can be a practical option under controlled processing and curing conditions. Microstructural confirmation of the underlying hydration and immobilization mechanisms remains a priority for future work.

As a result of rapid urbanization especially in the developing nations, there is increasing demand for sustainable construction materials. This coupled with increasing cost of the materials and environmental degradation as a result of mining of aggregates, there has been growing interest in the reuse of construction and demolition waste (CDW). Reclaimed fine aggregate (RFA), refers to fine aggregate derived from crushed concrete waste. It is being considered as a possible alternative to natural river sand in concrete production. This study assesses the integrity of RFA as a viable material for concrete by focusing on its physical characteristics. Study is light for comparison with require limits from standards. It is therefore concluded that RFA is unsuitable for complete substitution of natural aggregate in concrete production. However, it is recommended as partial replacement for natural aggregate in concrete production.

This study evaluated the impact of incorporating Pleurotus ostreatus spent mushroom substrate (SMS) into corn silage-based diets on rumen fermentation, fiber digestibility, and biogas emissions using the Rumen Simulation Technique (RUSITEC). Given the need to reduce feed costs and mitigate environmentally harmful emissions from rumen fermentation, SMS was evaluated as a partial replacement for corn silage at inclusion levels of 10% (T1), 20% (T2), and 40% (T3). These three treatments were compared to a control diet consisting of 100% corn silage, to assess rumen fermentation characteristics, nutrient digestibility and biogas emissions, thereby determining the feasibility of SMS as a functional feed component in sustainable ruminant production systems. Significant improvements (P < 0.001) were observed in dry matter digestibility, which increased from 41.1% in the control to 46.8% and 48.1% in the T1 and T2 treatments, respectively. Likewise, neutral detergent fiber digestibility rose from 56.7% (control) to 62.3% (T1) and 65.1% (T2). SMS inclusion significantly decreased methane (CH4) emissions (P < 0.001), with the 10% SMS treatment reducing CH4 from 65.6 to 14.4 mg/g DM, a reduction of about 78%. Ammonia levels also declined significantly (P < 0.001) from 1025 mmol/g DM in the control to 420 mmol/g DM in the T1 group. Hydrogen sulfide emissions showed a similar pattern (P < 0.001), dropping from 7828 mmol/g DM (control) to 1817 mmol/g DM (20% SMS). Although total volatile fatty acids were not significantly affected, acetate levels increased (P = 0.046) to 74.9% (T2), and valerate was significantly higher (P < 0.001) in the T1 group (2.58%). These results indicate that replacing 10-20% of corn silage with P. ostreatus SMS can significantly enhance nutrient digestibility and reduce environmental emissions, without affecting fermentation characteristics. SMS is an economical, eco-friendly, and promising feed additive for sustainable ruminant farming.

The growing accumulation of industrial waste such as fly ash, plastic, and rubber poses serious environmental challenges. This study investigates the development of high-performance paver blocks by incorporating these waste materials as partial replacements for conventional ingredients. Fly ash is used as a substitute for cement, while plastic and crumb rubber replace fine and coarse aggregates, respectively. Different mix proportions (M1–M4) were prepared and tested for compressive strength, water absorption, abrasion resistance, and impact resistance. The results show that hybrid mixes improve durability and reduce permeability while maintaining adequate strength. The M3 mix achieved the highest compressive strength, whereas M4 showed superior durability properties. The study concludes that hybrid waste-based paver blocks are a sustainable and cost-effective alternative for pavement applications

Microbially induced carbonate precipitation (MICP) is promising for soil stabilization. However, its large-scale application is hindered by the cost of laboratory-grade yeast extract (YE), which often accounts for more than 70% of cultivation medium expenses. Here, we evaluate two standardized industrial nitrogen sources-industrial yeast extract (IYE) and soy peptone (SP)-as complete or partial replacements for YE in Sporosarcina pasteurii cultivation. Urease activity and the performance of bio-cemented sand columns were assessed via unconfined compressive strength (UCS), CaCO3 content, and mineralogical/microstructural analyses. Results indicated that the partial substitution scheme of 5 g/L pure YE + 10 g/L IYE yielded the best overall outcomes: bacterial urease activity reached ~80% of the control, UCS reached 4.27 MPa (9% higher than the control), and the nitrogen-source cost was reduced by 65.53%. The enhanced strength correlates with a favorable precipitation pathway that produced predominant calcite (~95.57% of the CaCO3 precipitate), together with a dense, interlocking microstructure. In contrast, SP-substituted media produced lower UCS despite a high CaCO3 content (up to 15.31%), indicating that mechanical performance depends not simply on the total amount or final polymorph of CaCO3, but on the combined effects of polymorph composition, precipitation pathway, and the resulting microstructural organization. Overall, the proposed YE-IYE blending strategy offers a practical route to lower-cost, higher-performance MICP sand stabilization.

Effect of non‑sodium salt substitution on the coagulation behavior of egg yolk: Analyzing egg yolk, plasma, and granule components during pickling.

Neem leaf extract as a sustainable green inhibitor for corrosion inhibition in RCC and strength improvement in concrete, in conjunction with spectroscopic characterization and statistical evaluation