Faecal sludge contains valuable plant nutrients and can be used as a fertiliser in agriculture, instead of being emitted as a pollutant. As this involves a risk of pathogen transmission, it is crucial to inactivate the pathogens in faecal sludge. One treatment alternative is ammonia sanitisation, as uncharged ammonia (NH3) inactivates pathogens. The aim of this thesis was to study how the patho...

The current pandemic of SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus infection has highlighted the importance control measures to combat infections caused by airborne pathogens. Non-specific actions include various means microorganism inactivation chemical or physical methods targeting structural components a given pathogen. Exposure viruses and bacteria elevated temperatures is one effective for discharging their h...

Remarkable improvements have been made in blood safety since the onset of the HIV epidemic. However, the current paradigm does not prevent all transfusion-transmitted infections and is reactive to new agents, thus accepting that some patients may be harmed before preventive measures are introduced. Several methods are now available that selectively damage DNA and RNA, thus inactivating pathogen...

Thermophilic anaerobic sludge digestion is a promising process to divert waste to beneficial use, but an important question is the required temperature and holding time to achieve a given degree of pathogen inactivation. In this study, the kinetics of inactivation of Ascaris suum and vaccine strain poliovirus type 1 (PVS-1), selected as indicators for helminth ova and enteric viruses respective...

Effective sanitization is important in viral epizootic outbreaks to avoid further spread of the pathogen. This study examined thermal inactivation as a sanitizing treatment for manure inoculated with highly pathogenic avian influenza virus H7N1 and bacteriophages MS2 and 6. Rapid inactivation of highly pathogenic avian influenza virus H7N1 was achieved at both mesophilic (35°C) and thermophilic...

The transmission of airborne pathogens represents a major threat to worldwide public health. Ultraviolet light irradiation can contribute the sanification air reduce pathogen transmission. We have designed compact filter for inactivation by means UVC LED sources, whose effective irradiance is enhanced thanks high reflective surfaces. used ray-tracing and computational fluid dynamic simulations ...

Growing consumer demand for high-quality products coupled with minimally processed and a minor use of synthetic food additives have increased the need to search new sources natural antimicrobials ensure product safety. This study aimed evaluate antimicrobial activity extracts from brown algae Ericaria selaginoides against Bacillus cereus in typical Catalan fresh cheese (“mató”) by means challen...