To develop a technology that can efficiently convert dewatered sewage sludge cake into solid fuel, we experimentally investigated the effects of the hydrothermal treatment on dewaterability and carbon distributions. Dewatered sewage sludge cake with a water content of about 80 wt% could not be dewatered by increasing the pressure of a mechanical press. However, after hydrothermal treatment, the sewage sludge cake could be dewatered with a mechanical press. Moisture content was negatively correlated with treatment temperature at temperatures below 473K but stayed about the same at temperatures above 473K in the range studied. Carbon contents in the residual solid after treatment with a mechanical press were negatively correlated with the reaction temperature of the hydrothermal treatment owing to the solubilization of part of the volatile carbons in the dewatered sewage sludge cake. On the basis of the above results, we proposed a novel solid fuel production system composed of the following processes: hydrothermal treatment, mechanical press treatment, concentration, and drying. The optimum operating temperature of hydrothermal treatment was 473K in the range studied, and at this temperature, we estimated that the energy input to obtain dry sewage sludge using the proposed system would be about two-thirds that of a conventional drying process.

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The outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), was identified in 2019; thereafter, the COVID-19 outbreak became a health emergency of international concern. The impact of COVID-19 on liver-transplant recipients is unclear. Thus, it is currently unknown whether liver-transplant recipients are at a higher risk of developing complications related to COVID-19. Here, we report the case of liver-transplant recipients who were infected with SARS-CoV-2. A 20-year-old man who had undergone living-donor liver transplantation from his father at 5 years of age because of congenital biliary atresia was referred to our hospital for SARS-CoV-2 infection. Chest computed tomography did not show any abnormalities; however, laboratory results revealed liver dysfunction. He received tacrolimus as maintenance therapy that was continued at the same dose. He has not developed severe pulmonary disease and was discharged after 10 days of hospitalization. Limited data are available on post-transplant patients with COVID-19, and this case of a young patient without metabolic comorbidities did not show any association of severe COVID-19 under tacrolimus treatment. The progression of COVID-19 in liver-transplant recipients is complex, and COVID-19 risk should be evaluated in each patient until the establishment of optimal guidelines.

BACKGROUND Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) is a risk factor for nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). AIM To determine the prevalence and clinical correlates of NAFLD in a large cohort of patients with T2DM. METHODS Four hundred thirty-seven participants with T2DM who consulted at Meijo Hospital from April 2019 to September 2020 and underwent computed tomography (CT) were assessed. The mean age was 74 ± 13 years, and 269 were men. Hepatic attenuation minus splenic attenuation (CT L−S ) less than 1 Hounsfield unit was considered fatty liver. NAFLD was defined as fatty liver in the absence of significant alcohol consumption and hepatitis virus infection. A multiple logistic regression was used to assess the independent factors associated with NAFLD. RESULTS NAFLD was identified in 25.2% of the participants. Young age (odds ratio [OR] = −0.945; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.922–0.969), higher hemoglobin levels (OR = 1.501, 95%CI: 1.278–1.764), lower high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol levels (OR = 0.971, 95%CI: 0.953–0.989), and the absence of dialysis (OR = 0.109, 95%CI: 0.014–0.856) were independent predictors of NAFLD. CONCLUSION NAFLD was detected with CT in 25.2% of the participants. NAFLD was associated with younger age, higher hemoglobin levels, lower HDL cholesterol levels, and an absence of dialysis.

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