Biosurfactants are derived from plants and microorganisms such as fungi, yeast, and bacteria. Biosurfactants are also called natural surfactants which are amphiphilic biological compounds comprised of both hydrophilic and hydrophobic moieties. The environmental concerns about the effect of toxic and conventional surfactants have increased the demand for renewable and biodegradable surfactants with low toxicity and other useful effects. Therefore, the application of biosurfactants has gained much attention in different industries mainly in petroleum, food, cosmetic and pharmaceutical products. This review summarizes the utilization of biosurfactants as emulsifying, wetting, foaming and antimicrobial agents in various industrial processes along with their promising availability and ensuring environmental quality.

The effect of CO2 partial pressure on ethanol dry reforming was evaluated over 5%Ce-10%Co/Al2O3 catalyst at = PCO2 = 20-50 kPa, PC2H5OH = 20 kPa, reaction temperature of 973 K under atmospheric pressure. The catalyst was prepared by using impregnation method and tested in a fixed-bed reactor. X-ray diffraction measurements studied the formation of Co3O4, spinel CoAl2O4 and CeO2, phases on surface of 5%Ce-10%Co/Al2O3 catalyst. CeO2, CoO and Co3O4 oxides were obtained during temperature–programmed calcination. Ce-promoted 10%Co/Al2O3 catalyst possessed high BET surface area of 137.35 m2 g -1 . C2H5OH and CO2 conversions was improved with increasing CO2 partial pressure from 20-50 kPa whilst the optimal selectivity of H2 and CO was achieved at 50 kPa.

Emulsions have been widely used in different industrial processes. The development and production of good quality emulsions depend on the knowledge of emulsion preparation, stability mechanisms and rheological studies. To form stable emulsions, an emulsifier is required to reduce the droplet sizes of the emulsions and enhance the emulsion stability. The purpose of this review article is to provide information about types of emulsions, stability mechanisms and rheological studies as well as factor affecting the stability of emulsions.

Membrane bioreactor (MBR) is credible and promising technology methods for industrial wastewater treatment and recycle it to use in different applications. Today MBR has many domestic and industrial applications and it is popular among the types of conventional treatment methods. The main drawback in the operation of MBR is membrane fouling, that drive to the decrease in permeate flux so need some technique to clean the membrane. In spite of more than a decade of significant advances in improvement of fouling reduction technique, various physical and mechanical methods are still necessary to be improved to limit the membrane fouling problems. In this review, the advantages and disadvantages of membrane bioreactor, fundamental of membrane fouling that is affected by some factors and methods of controlling membrane fouling were discussed.

Emulsions can be found in different industries such as petroleum, food, cosmetic and pharmaceutics. Generally, there are two types of emulsions in petroleum industries: water-in-oil (W/O) and oil-in-water (O/W). The aim of this research was to evaluate the stability of W/O emulsions using different emulsifiers such as Span 80, Span 83, Tritonx-100, DEA, and LSWR with different concentrations (1.5 and 2.5) vol%. All the emulsions were prepared at (20- 80) vol% and 2000 rpm. The result of this study showed that the most stable emulsions were prepared by Span 80. However, LSWR formed the most unstable emulsions. In addition, it was also found that the concentration of emulsifier can significantly affect the emulsion stability.