Themed collection Outstanding Papers 2024 – Environmental Science: Advances
A review on waste biomass-to-energy: integrated thermochemical and biochemical conversion for resource recovery
Integrating thermochemical–biochemical methods overcomes the single-path limits for bioenergy production. This synergy lowers costs and enhances energy sustainability, highlighting waste-to-energy's vital role in the circular economy transition.
Environ. Sci.: Adv., 2024,3, 1197-1216
https://doi.org/10.1039/D4VA00109E
Bioremediation – the recent drift towards a sustainable environment
This review includes insights on the impacts of azo dyes; the principles of bioremediation and its strategies, advantages, and limitations; and future prospects involving nanobioremediation.
Environ. Sci.: Adv., 2024,3, 1097-1110
https://doi.org/10.1039/D3VA00358B
Advancements in the stability, protection and lead-free strategies of perovskite solar cells: a critical review
Lead toxicity is a challenge for the large-scale commercial production and the field implementation of photovoltaics.
Environ. Sci.: Adv., 2024,3, 1004-1029
https://doi.org/10.1039/D3VA00401E
Metal oxide-based electrochemical sensors for pesticide detection in water and food samples: a review
The increasing need for food and agricultural resources necessitates using pesticides to protect plants, but this approach also poses pesticide poisoning and environmental hazards.
Environ. Sci.: Adv., 2024,3, 154-176
https://doi.org/10.1039/D3VA00313B
Why there is no evidence that pyridine killed the English crabs
Disputing the hypothesis that pyridine caused a mass mortality event in crustaceans along 70 km of English coastline.
Environ. Sci.: Adv., 2024,3, 1385-1391
https://doi.org/10.1039/D4VA00006D
A preliminary investigation of microbial communities on the Athabasca Glacier within deposited organic matter
Glacier ecosystems are shrinking at an accelerating rate due to changes in climate, and increased darkening from allochthonous and autochthonous carbon is leading to changes in light absorption, associated heat, and microbial communities.
Environ. Sci.: Adv., 2024,3, 355-365
https://doi.org/10.1039/D3VA00176H
Surfactant-enhanced coagulation and flocculation improves the removal of perfluoroalkyl substances from surface water
Addition of cationic surfactant in combination with powdered activated carbon significantly enhanced the removal of regulated PFAS during conventional coagulation/flocculation processes.
Environ. Sci.: Adv., 2024,3, 1714-1721
https://doi.org/10.1039/D4VA00093E
Magnetic amino-functionalized graphene oxide nanocomposite for PFAS removal from water
Magnetic amino-functionalized graphene oxide is a promising adsorbent for removing “forever chemicals” from water.
Environ. Sci.: Adv., 2024,3, 1698-1713
https://doi.org/10.1039/D4VA00171K
Dioxins in the Arctic: local sources vs. long-range transport
This study revealed that dioxins released from wildfires in the Arctic have exceeded anthropogenic emissions from local and distant sources in the northern hemisphere since the late 2010s.
Environ. Sci.: Adv., 2024,3, 1552-1563
https://doi.org/10.1039/D4VA00202D
Dissolved oxygen forecasting in the Mississippi River: advanced ensemble machine learning models
This study introduces advanced ensemble machine learning models for predicting dissolved oxygen in the Mississippi River, offering high accuracy across various forecast horizons and improving environmental monitoring.
Environ. Sci.: Adv., 2024,3, 1537-1551
https://doi.org/10.1039/D4VA00119B
Nitrogen isotopes in herbaria document historical nitrogen sewage pollution in the Mersey Estuary, England
A schematic figure illustrating how nitrogen isotopes (δ15N) from treated–raw sewage enters an estuary, is taken up by macroalgae (seaweed). Treated sewage produces more elevated δ15N values compared to raw sewage.
Environ. Sci.: Adv., 2024,3, 676-685
https://doi.org/10.1039/D4VA00015C
A comprehensive trial on PFAS remediation: hemp phytoextraction and PFAS degradation in harvested plants
In this community driven project, hemp plants were used to extract PFAS from contaminated soil and hydrothermal liquefaction was used to degrade PFAS in the harvested hemp.
Environ. Sci.: Adv., 2024,3, 304-313
https://doi.org/10.1039/D3VA00340J
Modelling and predicting liquid chromatography retention time for PFAS with no-code machine learning
Machine learning is increasingly popular and promising in environmental science due to its potential in solving various environmental problems, particularly with simple code-free tools.
Environ. Sci.: Adv., 2024,3, 198-207
https://doi.org/10.1039/D3VA00242J
Microplastic distribution and ecological risks: investigating road dust and stormwater runoff across land uses
This study in Melbourne, Australia, reveals higher levels of microplastic pollution in industrial areas compared to commercial or residential areas. Stormwater runoff is identified as the main pathway for transporting MPs from road dust to aquatic ecosystems.
Environ. Sci.: Adv., 2024,3, 62-75
https://doi.org/10.1039/D3VA00128H
Using a supervised machine learning approach to predict water quality at the Gaza wastewater treatment plant
This paper presents the use of a machine learning approach to predict the performance of a Gaza wastewater treatment plant.
Environ. Sci.: Adv., 2024,3, 132-144
https://doi.org/10.1039/D3VA00170A
About this collection
The Environmental Science journals Outstanding Papers identifies a selection of excellent papers published in the Royal Society of Chemistry’s Environmental Science journal family, showcasing great research from across the globe.
To celebrate more of the great papers published in Environmental Science: Advances during 2024, we’ve gathered all shortlisted papers in this special collection.
Outstanding Paper: Surfactant-enhanced coagulation and flocculation improves the removal of perfluoroalkyl substances from surface water