Research Articles

Urban parks are increasingly expected to support rest, relaxation, and restorative perception under accelerating urbanization and everyday stress. However, studies on park seating still lack a systematic pathway for translating user demands into design elements and selecting design alternatives. Taking restorative-oriented wooden seating in urban parks as the object, this study developed a GT–Kano–AHP–QFD–TOPSIS hybrid model. Semi-structured interviews with 30 park users were analyzed using grounded theory. Kano classification was then conducted using 91 valid questionnaires. Twelve experts applied AHP to weight 13 user demand items, which were translated into design elements through QFD. Finally, 17 evaluators rated three design alternatives on a seven-point scale, and TOPSIS was used for ranking. The results showed that seating comfort, ergonomic dimensional optimization, and aesthetic form had the highest weights, at 0.1614, 0.1404, and 0.1321, respectively. Ergonomic dimensions, backrest design, lumbar support, multi-user adaptability, and aesthetic form were identified as priority design elements. Alternative 3 achieved the highest relative closeness coefficient (0.8007), indicating the best overall performance. This study provides a traceable user-oriented decision pathway for wooden park seating design, while its findings reflect perceived preferences rather than clinically or physiologically verified outcomes.

Amongst industrial lignins, such as alkaline and kraft lignins, lignin from hemicellulose pre-treatment liquor is gaining considerable interest because of its various properties. To explore application potential, a lignin sample that was selectively adsorbed by XAD-16N resin from mild alkaline extracts of sugarcane bagasse waste was identified by structural analysis. Trace amounts of hemicellulose were found in the adsorbates that exhibited lignin carbohydrate complexes (LCCs) structure. Prominent NMR signals indicated β-O-4ʹ, β-5ʹ, β-βʹ, and β-1ʹ structures in the side chain, and aromatic signals corresponded to major bagasse lignin units: p-coumarate and ferulate. The quantity of benzyl ether (BE) was 3.33 per 100 Ar-units, which was considerably higher than that of hydrolysate obtained from hydrothermal pretreatments. The content of various hydroxyl groups of mild alkaline lignin obtained by resin adsorption was higher than that of lignin isolated by other methods. Moreover, the adsorbed lignin was relatively pure, and its thermal stability was superior to that of the centrifuged lignin. These results revealed new characteristics of lignin and LCC structures obtained via mild alkaline pretreatment and resin adsorption.

This study investigated the photochemical transformation of amber oil under UV irradiation and its impact on biological activities. Gas chromatography–mass spectrometry analysis showed that untreated amber oil was rich in long-chain hydrocarbons and fatty acids, predominantly cis-vaccenic acid (36.53%), whereas UV irradiation produced oxygenated compounds, mainly 2-(2-hydroxypropoxy)-1-propanol (13.02%), 1,1′-oxybis-2-propanol (6.93%), and diethyl phthalate (6.73%). UV-treated oil exhibited enhanced antimicrobial activity, particularly against Bacillus subtilis (22 ± 1.0 mm; MIC 15.62 µg/mL) and Candida albicans (24 ± 0.5 mm; MIC 15.62 µg/mL). Strong antibiofilm activity was recorded, exceeding 90% inhibition at 75% MBC against tested bacteria, including Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli. Anti-inflammatory evaluation showed effective inhibition of protein denaturation (IC₅₀ = 2.60 ± 0.11 µg/g). Wound healing assays showed a high closure (90.9%) for UV-treated oil, compared to untreated oil (61.1%). Molecular docking revealed that cis-vaccenic acid exhibited stronger binding affinity toward the target proteins of Aspergillus terreus (4KWD) and B. subtilis (3OIF) than 2-(2-hydroxypropoxy)-1-propanol, with docking scores of −6.64 and −7.12 kcal/mol, respectively. These findings demonstrate that UV-induced photochemical modification is an effective approach to enhance the biological properties of amber oil, providing a basis for its further investigation in natural bioactive product applications.

The effects of chitosan, poly-DADMAC, and cationic polyacrylamide (cPAM) were evaluated relative to the optical and mechanical properties of paper from chemical-mechanical pulp (CMP) from Mazandaran Pulp and Paper Mill. Additives were applied at different concentrations: chitosan (0%, 1%, and 2%), poly(diallyldimethylammonium chloride) (poly-DADMAC): 0%, 0.3%, 0.5%, and 0.7%), and cPAM (0%, 0.25%, 0.5%, and 0.75%). Papers with a basis weight of 60 g/m² were prepared, and brightness, opacity, a* factor, tensile strength, breaking length, tear strength, and burst strength were evaluated. Factorial analysis of variance showed that the effects of the three additives varied depending on the property evaluated. Chitosan positively affected brightness, breaking length, and tear strength; PAM showed a particularly strong effect on breaking length and tensile strength; and poly-DADMAC contributed to improvements in brightness, tensile strength, and the a* factor. Scanning electron microscopy showed a relatively denser and more interconnected fiber network in treated papers, with fewer visibly open void spaces and greater apparent fiber contact. These morphological changes may be associated with improved inter-fiber interactions and the observed changes in paper properties. Among the tested formulations, the combination of 2% chitosan, 0.25% cPAM, and 0.7% poly-DADMAC provided favorable overall performance.

Tannic acid has attracted considerable attention as a natural inhibitor of fungi. The antifungal activity of tannic acid was evaluated by assessing fungal growth and the activities of polygalacturonase and pectin methylesterase. Fungal growth was stimulated at 200 μg mL⁻¹ (112.6%), but significantly reduced at higher concentrations, reaching 12.4% at 1000 μg mL⁻¹ (87.6% inhibition) of tannic acid. In vivo, tannic acid effectively controlled postharvest soft rot in muskmelon, achieving up to 81.4% disease control. Enzyme activities in the culture medium declined markedly, reduced to 15.3% for polygalacturonase and 20.1% for pectin methylesterase. However, it should be noted that this reduction may result from either direct inhibition of enzyme catalytic activity or reduced enzyme secretion due to suppressed fungal growth, or a combination of both. Molecular docking was performed using heterologous protein structures (endopolygalacturonase from Fusarium verticillioides, PDB: 1HG8; pectin methylesterase from Daucus carota, PDB: 1GQ8) as representative models. Because these proteins are not from R. stolonifer, the docking results have no direct biological relevance to the target pathogen and cannot be used to infer binding to R. stolonifer enzymes. Thus, the experimental data demonstrate that tannic acid reduces extracellular pectin-degrading enzyme activity in fungal cultures, but the mechanism remains unresolved.