Provided are a technique for preparing a porous cellulose medium without using a special gelling agent for a solution in which cellulose acetate serving as a raw material is dissolved; and a porous cellulose medium and the like produced using the technique. A method for producing a porous cellulose medium comprises the step of preparing a flowable homogeneous composition comprising cellulose acetate, a basic compound, and a solvent including water, and gelling the composition by deacetylation reaction of the cellulose acetate.

A method of water treatment includes flowing water that includes nitrogen and phosphorus compounds through a sorption media composition within at least one chamber of a water treatment system. The composition comprises iron filings comprising at least 5 volume (vol) % of the composition, sand particles comprising at least 10 vol % of the composition; and clay particles comprising at least 2 vol % of the composition. The iron filings, sand particles, and clay particles are mixed together. During the flowing the clay particles attract the nitrogen and phosphorus compounds which become absorbed onto a surface of the iron filings and the clay resulting in a removal of the nitrogen and phosphorus compounds and the generation of reaction products. Nitrogen and phosphorus are then recovered from the reaction products.

A tray has an integral inner layer having an inner surface and an exterior surface. The inner layer has a substantially planar base portion and a wall portion extending upwardly from at least a portion of a perimeter of the base portion. An outer layer applied to the exterior surface of the inner layer comprises a liquid-impermeable coating. The inner layer consists of an absorbent paperboard, and the outer layer is adapted to inhibit liquid absorbed in the inner layer from leaking through the tray. The tray may be useful in the retail display of meat or produce.

The invention relates to a hydrophobed porous oil binder in the form of a nonwoven fabric composed of lignocellulose-containing raw materials having a biologically functionalized surface for removing mineral-oil-based contaminants in seas, rivers, inland waters, and stormwater basins or wastewater treatment plants, wherein the density of the oil binder is 10 to 900 kg/m.sup.3, the oil binder is 1 to 25 mm thick, the broad surface of the oil binder has a dimension of 9 to 200 cm.sup.2, the porosity of the oil binder is 30 to 96%, measured with respect to the total fraction of the oil binder, and the flexural strength of the oil binder is at least 1.5 N/mm.sup.2.

A composition and method are disclosed for forming lignin-containing floccules from dissolved lignin, lignin nanoparticles, lignin colloids, or lignin-containing cellulose nanofibers. The floccules may be used to clean oil-contaminated materials such as oil-contaminated plastics or oil-contaminated water. The polymers and oil may then be recovered for further use, without requiring organic solvents.

A method for manufacturing a water absorption treatment material made of a plurality of grains includes a preparing step, a pulverizing step, a core portion forming step, and a coating portion forming step. The preparing step is a step of preparing a paper powder to which water-absorbent polymers adhere, the paper powder being derived from a sanitary product. The pulverizing step is a step of pulverizing remaining polymers using a pulverizer. The core portion forming step is a step of forming a core portion constituting each of the grains The coating portion forming step is a step of forming a coating portion so as to cover the core portion, the coating portion containing the paper powder, and the remaining polymers pulverized in the pulverizing step. In the pulverizing step, the remaining polymers left in a state of adhering to the paper powder are subjected to the pulverizer.

A method of making an extruded granular absorbent is provided where the method includes providing an extruder and a starch-containing admixture, and pressurizing the starch containing admixture in the extruder under relatively high extrusion pressures to extrude the pressurized starch-containing admixture from the extruder, and producing a water absorbent and oil absorbent extrudate. The present invention further provides that the extruded granular absorbent may be combined with a non-extruded granular material with relatively high inert or cellulose content where there may be a greater proportion of extruded granular absorbent, and the extruded granular absorbent and non-extruded granular material agglutinate into a clump when wetted with water or urine.

A method of making an extruded granular absorbent is provided where the method includes providing an extruder and a starch-containing admixture, and pressurizing the starch containing admixture in the extruder under relatively high extrusion pressures to extrude the pressurized starch-containing admixture from the extruder, and producing a water absorbent and oil absorbent extrudate. The present invention further provides that the extruded granular absorbent may be combined with a non-extruded granular material with relatively high inert or cellulose content where there may be a greater proportion of extruded granular absorbent, and the extruded granular absorbent and non-extruded granular material agglutinate into a clump when wetted with water or urine.

A method of water treatment includes flowing water that includes nitrogen and phosphorus compounds through a sorption media composition within at least one chamber of a water treatment system. The composition comprises iron filings comprising at least 5 volume (vol) % of the composition, sand particles comprising at least 10 vol % of the composition; and clay particles comprising at least 2 vol % of the composition. The iron filings, sand particles, and clay particles are mixed together. During the flowing the clay particles attract the nitrogen and phosphorus compounds which become absorbed onto a surface of the iron filings and the clay resulting in a removal of the nitrogen and phosphorus compounds and the generation of reaction products. Nitrogen and phosphorus are then recovered from the reaction products.

A carbon pyrolyzate material is disclosed, having utility as an adsorbent as well as for energy storage and other applications. The pyrolyzate material comprises microporous carbon derived from low cost naturally-occurring carbohydrate source material such as polysaccharides. In adsorbent applications, the carbon pyrolyzate may for example be produced in a particulate form or a monolithic form, having high density and high pore volume to maximize gas storage and delivery, with the pore size distribution of the carbon pyrolyzate adsorbent being tunable via activation conditions to optimize storage capacity and delivery for specific gases of interest.