This study investigates what contemporary literature considers to be the outcome and impact of ChatGPT within libraries. How this new technology might change the libraries and what are the pros and cons. The studies questions are “How is ChatGPT's impact on libraries' operations discussed in the research literature? Based on existing research literature, how can ChatGPT be used by librarians in their work?” The method used is a systematic literary review. Systematic Literature study investigates how ChatGPT in the library sphere is described and debated in contemporary articles, and how it affects the work of librarians. The selected articles in this study were taken from three databases. These were LISTA (Library, Information Science & Technology Abstracts), LISA (Library & Information Science Abstracts) and Web of Science. Through a sample of twelve articles the questions about how the libraries could change were answered. The conclusion is that time efficiency, reference search, cataloging and translation are potential positive outcomes of the new technology, while some articles fear that misinformation, restructuring, plagiarism, bias, integrity breach and socioeconomical hindrances might be negative outcomes.

This study reports the synthesis of a stable and homogeneous nanocomposite of cellulose nanocrystals (CNCs) and vinyl acetate (VA) monomer via a semi-batch water-based emulsion polymerization technique, targeting a total solid content (TSC) of 50 wt.% to meet industrial requirements such as smaller storage volume, and easier transportation. The semi-batch approach enabled a consistent distribution of the reactants and improved scalability for industrial applications. CNCs were successfully incorporated into a polyvinyl acetate (PVAc) latex formulation at concentrations of up to 3.22 wt.% relative to VA monomer. Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy indicated the consumption of hydroxyl groups on the CNC surfaces. The nanocomposites containing 1.93% CNC demonstrated the most promising performance, reducing the water sensitivity of pristine PVAc and lowering both the water vapor transmission rate (WVTR) and permeation. Nevertheless, the increased CNC content induced an uneven surface topography and a broader polymer particle size and distribution, as observed by polarized light and scanning electron microscopy. Mechanical testing revealed a general reduction in the tensile properties relative to neat PVAc, although the 1.93 wt. % CNC sample exhibited the least decline. The resulting nanocomposites exhibited an extended shelf life and colloidal stability, indicating their potential for industrial applications.

Flat glass waste from building demolition is an underused resource with potential to reduce the climate impact of construction materials. This study compares two recycling pathways for flat glass waste: the first is closed-loop recycling into new glass, and the second is the use of glass in concrete as a replacement for cement. The comparison is based on life cycle, circularity assessment and experimental evaluation of concrete performance. Recycling flat glass into new glass can reduce emissions by 945 kg CO2eq per ton of recycled glass when the production mix contains 65 percent recycled content. However, only between 1 and 3% percent of demolition flat glass is suitable for this process because of contamination and quality limitations. As a result, the practical climate benefit of demolition glass in new glass production is limited to about 38 kg CO2eq per ton of demolition glass. Concrete offers a much larger waste sink. Replacing 20% of cement with milled glass powder results in emission savings of 776 kg CO2eq per ton of glass. A concrete mix containing 33% glass shows the same compressive strength as a reference mix.

Photographs as a direct representation of nature can serve as a means of probing pupils’ perceptions of ecosystems and biodiversity. In this empirical study, 98 pupils aged 10–12 years in primary schools in rural and urban western Sweden were asked to describe what they saw in a photograph of a lake and a forest, as well as what could be present but not visible. An ecological approach to visual perception was used as the theoretical framework. Individual pupils within groups exhibited a broad range of species knowledge. Although no animals were visible in the photograph, animals were imagined much more readily than plants. Forest species outnumbered aquatic ones in the answers. Pupils in rural schools named more tree and mammal species, while urban pupils more often used generic terms, such as ‘tree’ and ‘animal’. These findings raise implications for ‘what’ and ‘how’ in ecology instruction to reinforce plant awareness and species naming.

The purpose of this bachelor’s thesis is to deepen the knowledge about Swedish secondary school teachers’ understanding of the professional role of the school librarian, and of collaboration between teachers and school librarians. Five secondary school teachers were interviewed. Their understanding of the school librarians’ work and competencies were analyzed with the support of Carol Kuhlthau´s (2004) “Levels of Education”. According to our interpretation, two of the teachers’ descriptions of their school librarians resemble the Organizer, one resembles the Lecturer, and two of them resemble the Counselor. However, the result also shows that the teachers appreciate cooperating with the school librarians, but factors such as the lack of time and resources interfere. There are also factors that contribute to their collaboration, such as the librarians work with language and reading promotion.

The purpose of this thesis has been to study referral responses for a Swedish Government Official Report on the subject of school libraries in Sweden (SOU 2021:3). Since most schools in Sweden are governed by municipalities or private school owners, there has been an increasing inequality in the school system, which has also affected the school libraries. A Swedish Official Report was conducted in order to make suggestions for legislation to strengthen the school libraries, and many stakeholders made their opinions known by writing referral responses. The aim of this study has been to analyse the arguments and ideas stated in a selection of these responses. The main findings suggest that there is indeed a profound split in the opinions on the subject of school libraries. Contested issues include staffing, educational background needed for library maintenance, and the organization of the school libraries. The debate is seemingly affected by differences due to ideologies and values. Some findings shed light on the complexity regarding collaborations between teachers and school librarians. The stakeholders also showed a variety of views when estimating risks and rewards of using teacher librarians as heads of school libraries.

User Experience is one of the most important aspects of web development in today’s world of high competition online. Bad UX can make it hard to find information, frustrate users, damage the reputation of the service provider and, in the long run, cause a loss of business. The present work is a qualitative study of a booking system, provided by a landlord to tenants, for booking the communal laundry rooms. Using three methods for capturing what issues the tenants (users) experience when using the booking system, I confirm the soundness of established UX strategies while also identifying what areas in the examined system need improved. The methods used are user journey, semi-structured interview, and card sorting. 

Purpose

This article seeks to understand attempts to formalize informality and keep the urgency of crisis in public sector.

Design/methodology/approach

To understand this societal problem, the study used qualitative methods of observations of meetings, text analysis and interviews with members of a central management group, as well as their Coordination group for receiving and integrating newly arrived migrants in a major city of Sweden.

Findings

The analysis shows how public organizations in response to the 2015 refugee situation initially adopted an ephemeral mode of action characterized by urgency, improvisation and short-term coordination. This break from their usual logic of stability and long-term planning enabled rapid mobilization but was not confined to the moment of crisis. Instead, actors within these organizations worked strategically to sustain the sense of urgency beyond the immediate situation. Through these actions, the ephemeral response was transformed into a durable mode of governance. The temporary was not only extended but used as a foundation for building strategic attention and mandate around integration. In doing so, public actors aimed to redefine integration work as both urgent and necessary.

Practical implications

The study provides insights into how public servants can actively shape and sustain political attention for complex social issues, such as integration, beyond the immediate moment of crisis. It highlights the importance of strategic use of mandates, organizational framing and internal mobilization within public administration. The findings caution against overreliance on prolonged crisis narratives as a tool for institutional change. While such strategies may offer short-term momentum, they may obscure other pressing concerns and reduce the legitimacy of future crisis responses. Public organizations need to develop governance strategies that balance responsiveness with long-term planning and enable institutional flexibility without defaulting to a state of permanent exception.

Social implications

This article is societally relevant as it highlights how public servants work to maintain momentum around certain issues. This can be understood as leading to other issues being overshadowed or deprioritized. and that public servants within governmental organizations cannot rely solely on bureaucratic structures and predefined mandates to address and manage pressing and evolving concerns. The ambition to sustain a sense of urgency around societal challenges may be appealing, but it becomes problematic when new and unforeseen crises emerge. There is a risk of creating a “crying wolf” effect where the continued invocation of crisis diminishes its impact and undermines responsiveness to genuinely acute issues. In doing so, the article exposes some of the future dilemmas faced by public organizations operating within a society characterized by polycrisis.

Originality/value

The article contributes to understanding how actors within public organizations strategically draw on past events to sustain a sense of urgency and build mandate for long-term strategic work. Although these organizations are typically associated with stability, they initially responded in an ephemeral, crisis-like manner. Over time, actors worked to prolong this mode of engagement, using the crisis narrative to legitimize continued focus on integration as a pressing and strategic concern.

Sepsis is a time-critical and potentially lifethreatening condition in which early identification is essential to reduce mortality and severe complications. In the emergency department, the emergency nurse plays a central role in the initial assessment. Previous studies indicate that several factors may influence the ability to identify sepsis at an early stage.

The aim of this study was to illuminate the factors that influence emergency nurses’ ability to identify and assess patients with suspected sepsis in the emergency department.

An integrative literature review was conducted following the model by Whittemore and Knafl. Systematic literature searches were performed in CINAHL, PubMed and Scopus, guided by the PEO framework. Articles published within the last ten years were included. Only peer-reviewed original studies were selected. A total of nine articles were included after quality appraisal using Hawker’s assessment tool (≥30 points).

The results identified two overarching main themes: individual prerequisites and organizational prerequisites. Individual factors such as insufficient knowledge, varying clinical experience, and low professional confidence hindered early identification, whereas education, experience, and clinical intuition facilitated the assessment. Organizational factors such as high workload, limited resources, unclear guidelines, and inconsistent use of assessment tools restricted the emergency nurse’s scope of action, while clear structures, decision support, and effective interprofessional communication promoted early interventions.

The conclusion is that early identification of sepsis depends on a complex interplay between the emergency nurse’s clinical competence and the organizational conditions surrounding the work. Nonspecific symptoms, high workload, and insufficient structures may delay diagnosis and thereby pose a threat to patient safety. To strengthen patient safety, continuous competence development, clear guidelines, and work environments that support systematic assessments and effective communication are required.

Introduction: The elderly population is increasing globally, which leads to an increased inflow of patients to be triaged in emergency departments. Traditional triage systems are aimed at the younger patient which can lead to the older patient's symptoms being misinterpreted. The elderly patient who seeks care at the emergency department may have multiple illnesses, be frail, and present with nonspecific symptoms. When triaging the elderly patient, the emergency nurse needs to understand the relationship between various factors that can affect, such as multiple comorbidities and different medications that can result in normal vital signs. To perform correct prioritization and not undertriage the elderly patient, all different factors need to be weighed together. The aim was to highlight which factors the emergency nurse should consider when triaging elderly patients in the emergency department. The method used was an integrative literature review, and the analysis included ten articles. The results revealed two main themes: The complexity of the sick elderly and Factors affecting the emergency nurse during triage. Seven subthemes: What needs to be considered, Evaluating non-specific symptoms, The impact of frailty on mortality, The importance of vital parameters for the need for intensive care or mortality, Challenges in prioritizing, The impact of communication in triage work, and Knowledge and competence. The conclusion was that the emergency nurse needs to take into account the various factors that affect assessment in triage, which should result in a reduced risk of undertriaging the elderly patient. It was found that screening for frailty is an important factor in triaging older patients, and that the emergency nurse also needs to understand the relationship between non-specific symptoms and vital signs.

Mass casualty incidents are situations where the influx of patients rapidly exceeds available resources and places special demands on the organization and staff of emergency medical services. In these contexts, the nurse's ability to conduct professional and ethically anchored care is challenged, as clinical priorities, organizational limitations and emotional stress coincide. Due to an increased focus on disaster preparedness, there is a need for a coherent understanding of the factors that affect the nurse's care in mass casualty incidents. The purpose was to highlight the factors that are important for the nurse's care in a mass casualty event.

A Systematic integrative literature review was conducted according to the Whittemore and Knafl method. Database searches were performed in CINAHL, PubMed and Scopus and included peer-reviewed original articles published between 2015 and 2025. A total of 11 studies were included after quality review.

Results identified three overarching main themes: organizational and structural factors, professional and ethical factors, and psychological and relational factors. Functional management, clear communication and adequate preparedness appeared to be crucial for patient safety and room for maneuver. At the same time, it emerged that priorities and resource constraints can give rise to moral stress and experiences of professional vulnerability. Experience, team support and structured post-processing were identified as protective factors.

Conclusion is that the nurse's care in the event of mass casualty incidents is formed in a complex interaction between the individual, the organization and ethical conditions. An integrated preparedness that includes both structural support and ethical awareness is central to strengthening both patient safety and professional sustainability.

Background: Mass casualty events place significant demands on healthcare, particularly in the emergency departments where nurses play a central role. Research has focused primarily on organizational policies, while nurses' experiences are less well-documented. Understanding the factors that influence nurses' preparedness and performance during disaster response is crucial to improve their ability to provide adequate care, as lack of preparedness can obstruct their ability and confidence to act effectively during disasters.

Aim: Identify factors that affect nurses' disaster preparedness in emergency departments during mass casualty events.

Method: An integrative literature review was chosen according to Whittemore and Knafl (2005). Scientific articles were searched in the databases CINAHL, PubMed, PsycINFO, and Scopus. A total of 16 articles were included, with their quality ensured using Hawker, Kerr, Hardey, and Powell’s (2002) quality appraisal tool. From the analysis, themes and subthemes were identified using Whittemore and Knafl’s (2005) data analysis.

Result: The results were presented in two themes and two and three sub-themes, respectively. The two themes included “limitations and challenges in disaster preparedness” and “strengths and opportunities that improved disaster preparedness”. Nurses’ preparedness and competence were generally assessed as low to moderate, with identified deficiencies in education, psychological preparedness and resource availability. At the same time, it emerged that continuous and individually adapted education, simulation exercises and previous experience of disaster response strengthened competence, self-confidence and ability to act.

Conclusion: Nurses' preparedness and self-confidence are strengthened when structured and recurrent disaster training is carried out. Nevertheless, exposure to mass casualty events is considered a crucial factor that contributes to more effective and safe care during a disaster situation.

Background and problem formulation: A wound infection is a healthcare-associated injury that can cause psychological and/or physical suffering, illness or in the worst case death for the patient, and that could have been avoided if appropriate measures had been implemented in time. Wound infections occur in connection with surgery and are considered a healthcare- associated injury if they arise within 30 days after surgery or within 90 days after implant surgery. In Sweden, the operating room nurse is responsible for maintaining asepsis and patient safety in an operating environment that is complex, which makes necessary to have rules and routines that must be followed in order to be present there. Operating room nurses have knowledge of the importance of working in a patient-safe manner to prevent wound infections. Aim: To compile literature om operating room nurses´ experiences of working with patient safety to prevent wound infections. Method: A systematic literature review with a qualitative approach. The searches were conducted in three databases, and ten articles were included in the results. Results: Two main themes and six under themes: Surgical nurses´ preventive measures describe the aseptic technique during surgery and intraoperative skin preparation. Teamwork in the operating room describes experiences of the surgical safety checklist and procedures in the patient safety care, experiences of how patient safety influences by working environment in the operating room, experiences of time constraints during intraoperative care and experiences of communication within the surgical team. Conclusion: Operating room nurses experienced they take various measures in their work to reduce the risk of patients being affected by a healthcare-associated injury.

My name is Alba Caruso. I am a 2nd and 3rd generation immigrant. My grandparents moved from Finland in 1958, and my father left Sicily to come to Sweden, for my mother, in 1989.

I have always been very proud of my heritage and my family history. Growing up with two different cultures, that are very far from each other, makes one both blessed and confused. Confused because you never really feel like you belong anywhere, but blessed because you automatically have a broader understanding of people and their mannerisms.

But something that stays the same throughout all cultures and corners of the world is love, and especially the love from a grandmother. As a child, my grandmothers spoiled me (and my sister) with massive amounts of love, laughter, guidance, compassion and a lot of knowledge in the field of textile.

In this project in textile design I will draw inspiration from my grandmothers early projects i.e. paintings and crocheted pieces. By using keywords inspirited by their designs I will generate them in AI image-generator and use those pictures as a starting point in my own sketching to investigate how the usage of AI can be used as a helpful tool when designing.

AI generators, digital printing and tufting guns are contemporary techniques that my grandmother could only dream of using. Re-designing their patterns and using contemporary techniques is my way to incorporate them in my designs and 

This thesis explores how a batch of defective garments referred to as “Dead Products” can be reactivated through scalable, material-led remanufacturing. Dead products are defined as garments that retain full material and functional value but are deemed unsaleable due to production defects, trend misalignment or logistical issues. Despite having high potential for reuse, such products are not largely acknowledged in current research and policy, which primarily emphasize recycling and preventive design as circular solutions. As a result, dead products often enter the same waste streams as lower-value textiles which represent a significant loss of material and economic potential.

Through a design-driven case study, this research applies Flöde’s remanufacturing framework to develop and evaluate remanufacturing interventions aimed at reactivating the defective garment. The alterations were developed on a single defective coat representing a larger batch of 250 units with the same issue. Guided by a hands-on material analysis that identified key construction flaws and fabric behavior, the process involved eight iterative interventions across Flöde’s framework for value-adding upcycling. The applied strategies fell under the Updates and Rework categories where each respective intervention was assessed in terms of material efficiency, execution time, implementation difficulty and brand alignment.

The findings show that low- to mid-complexity interventions that are developed through adaptive, material-responsive methods can restore both functional value and commercial relevance, without full deconstruction. Moreover, through the methodological approach, the study demonstrated how scalability within circular design can be reached through the consistency of the results that the method provides. Showing that highly viable and relevant outcomes can be generated from unpredictable inputs.

In this way, this research contributes to the field of circular product development and remanufacturing by offering a structured, practice-based example of how dead products can be integrated into the supply chain as a potential resource. Similarly, it highlights how remanufacturing can be applied on textile waste products as a circular design strategy that can both add and retain inherent value.

The upstream applications of post-consumer polypropylene (PCPP) demand long-term oxidation stability to prevent deterioration of its properties. This study explores the potential to replace a commercial antioxidant (AO), Irganox 1010 (I1010), with greener alternatives, quercetin and tocopherol. The emphasis was placed on evaluating their influence on thermal stability, including oxidation resistance and degradation behavior during multiple processing cycles. The rPCPP exhibited inferior thermal properties, with an oxidation induction time (OIT) of 1.2 min and an oxidation onset temperature (OOT) of 205°C. Incorporation of the selected individual AOs improved these properties. The combination of quercetin and tocopherol (QT) exhibited the best results, increasing OIT to 43 min and OOT to 260°C. After five reprocessing cycles, the melt flow rate (MFR) values for the QT system remained unchanged, whereas I1010-stabilized and the non-stabilized rPCPP increased by 183% and 376%, respectively. Similarly, the carbonyl index (CI) value increased by four times for rPCPP and two times for I1010, whereas the QT remained nearly unchanged. The observed enhanced stability of QT is attributed to the synergistic effect. This effect was further supported by the DPPH assay. All the findings demonstrate the effectiveness of selected natural AOs, particularly QT, as a sustainable alternative to conventional stabilizers.

Background: About 4 in 10 people in Sweden get cancer during their lifetime, and approximately half of them will be diagnosed during their working life. As cancer survival rates improve, a growing number of individuals face challenges in returning to work following treatment. This increases the demand for effective return-to-work (RTW) strategies. Despite existing rehabilitation frameworks, cancer survivors often encounter barriers to sustainable work reintegration.

Objective: This study aimed to investigate stakeholders’ perceptions of facilitators and barriers to RTW among cancer survivors, including factors promoting work-related well-being during the RTW process.

Methods: During the development phase of a work-oriented rehabilitation intervention, semistructured interviews were conducted, with 25 stakeholders involved in the RTW process: health care professionals (n=12), social insurance officers (n=7), employers (n=5), and an employment service agency officer (n=1). Data were analyzed using qualitative content analysis.

Results: Five overarching themes were identified that influenced RTW: collaboration and clear division of responsibilities, balancing individual adaptations, reducing structural barriers through support, views and expectations of the individual regarding RTW, and the emotional significance of work. Key facilitators included flexible work arrangements, individualized adaptations, a strong desire to work, and the emotional value of work. Barriers comprised lack of collaboration among stakeholders, particularly the absence of a clear division of responsibilities, as well as structural barriers, such as sick leave bureaucracy and financial obstacles. The role of rehabilitation coordinators was highlighted as pivotal in bridging gaps between stakeholders and ensuring continuity in care.

Conclusions: RTW for cancer survivors is a complex, multifactorial process requiring coordinated efforts across health care, insurance, and employment sectors. Enhancing collaboration, clarifying stakeholder responsibilities, and implementing flexible, individualized support structures are essential to facilitating cancer survivors’ RTW. Additionally, including a designated coordinator in the process is proposed. More support during the early phase of RTW is necessary to reduce the risk of long-term labor market exclusion. To help cancer survivors’ RTW, clear role definitions and shared responsibilities among stakeholders are essential. Flexibility in the RTW process helps individuals reintegrate at their own pace, reduces isolation, and promotes social connection. These are key considerations for future policies and support measures.

The purpose of this study is to extend current understanding of disabling marketplaces by substantiating embodied interaction, between service providers and disabled consumers, as interlinked multimodal activities in a material environment. The study is based on three extensive datasets on service production and provider-consumer interactions, gathered from several public sector markets containing private service providers. Using different qualitative and semi-ethnographical methods, the study makes three contributions: i) a more embodied construct of disability, materialised in a conceptual typology of embodiment and materiality, advancing research into what disables consumers from being active members of marketplaces; ii) identifying themes of disabling marketplace interactions which contribute a more fine-grained understanding of the relationship between embodiment and how consumers experience vulnerability – an explanation of how consumers with disabilities appropriate space and ascribe meanings to a place; and iii) substantiating previous research into ‘bodily dys-appearance’. 

This article investigates how social workers enact ethical judgement in digitalised welfare organisations. Drawing on the concept of ethics work, it examines how engagements with digital systems involve ongoing processes of identifying, interpreting and responding to ethically salient aspects of practice. The study is based on an organisational ethnography in Swedish social services, combining 45 interviews with social workers and approximately 200 h of shadowing in child and family services and economic assistance units. The analysis focuses on situations where digital systems generate frictions, ambiguities or risks for clients and explores how practitioners discern what is at stake and adjust, supplement or bypass digital routines. The findings show that discretionary responses to digital friction constitute important sites of ethics work. Digitalization introduces new conditions under which ethics work unfolds: ethical concerns are increasingly triggered by system logics embedded in digital systems and practitioners enact responsibility by interpreting system outputs and mitigating unintended consequences for clients. Rather than replacing traditional forms of ethical judgement, digital systems reconfigure when and how ethics work is enacted in everyday welfare practice.

This study investigates the impact of fiber composition and fabric structure on the liquid absorption and retention performance during pressure of weft-knitted fabrics designed for reusable incontinence products. Twelve fabric samples, made from polyester, polyamide (6.6), and viscose, were knitted in two structures—1 × 1 interlock and 1 × 1 rib—with varying stitch lengths. Key parameters such as porosity, air permeability, liquid absorption capacity (LAC), and retention capacity during pressure (RCDP) were measured and analyzed. Results showed that viscose fabrics demonstrated superior LAC (up to 312%) and RCDP due to their high hydrophilicity, fiber swelling, and porosity. Polyester and polyamide had lower LAC, with polyester performing better due to higher porosity despite its hydrophobic nature. Increasing stitch length reduced fabric density and increased porosity and air permeability, thereby enhancing LAC but decreasing RCDP. Rib structures consistently exhibited higher LAC, while interlock structures offered better RCDP due to smaller, more uniform pores. The findings highlight the importance of optimizing the porous structure by altering knitting parameters and fabric structure to develop reusable absorbent textiles that balance high absorption and retention capacity during pressure.

Advances in AI hold considerable promise for organ transplantation. While every transformation brings change, not all change is transformative. Despite the rapid growth of AI in medicine, most applications remain in developmental or experimental stages, with relatively few having been successfully integrated into routine clinical practice. As a professional society, ESOT recognises that achieving meaningful impact will require more than technical progress. This position paper outlines five critical domains for successful implementation. (1) High-quality development: Coordinated collaboration and methodological rigour are prerequisites for trust; AI is only as robust as the data used to train it. (2) Ethical considerations: We must address risks to equity and access to care, and move from generic ethical principles to transplantation-specific ethical guidance. (3) Regulatory landscape: AI in transplantation is regulated under both EU medical device and AI legislation; compliance is central to stakeholder trust. (4) Responsible adoption: AI should augment, not replace, human expertise. Strengthening AI literacy is essential for meaningful adoption. (5) Participatory design: Active involvement of transplant professionals and patients is essential to address real clinical needs. These statements serve as a strategic framework to guide clinicians, researchers, and policymakers in making AI a genuine force multiplier for the transplant community.

Tofu and tempeh, derived from soybeans, are widely consumed for their nutritional value and high protein content. However, the production of these foods generates nutrient-rich wastewater that poses environmental challenges while offering opportunities for valorization. This study investigates the production of volatile fatty acids (VFAs) and acetic acid from tofu and tempeh wastewater via batch anaerobic digestion, utilizing various pretreatment methods. The pretreatments included adjustment of the pH to 6 and inoculum treatments with and without heat shock under mesophilic and thermophilic conditions. Results demonstrated that the highest average total VFA concentrations of 10.08 and 9.79 g L−1 were achieved for tempeh at T3 (tempeh wastewater + pH 6 + thermophilic + heat shock) and tofu wastewater at TF3 (tofu wastewater + pH 6 + thermophilic + heat shock), respectively. The highest acetic acid concentrations were observed under mesophilic conditions, reaching 77.32% for tempeh wastewater at T7 (tempeh wastewater + unadjusted pH + mesophilic + heat shock) and 92.40% for tofu wastewater at TF10 (tempeh wastewater + pH 6 + mesophilic + non-heat shock). Notably, increased VFA production was associated with reduced cumulative methane yields, such as 3.65 mL g−1 volatle solid (VS) for tempeh at T3 and 25.23 mL g−1-VS for tofu wastewater at TF3. These findings indicate the effectiveness of the pretreatment strategies in enhancing VFA and acetic acid production, suggesting significant potential for industrial applications. Further research is recommended to optimize production processes and explore the broader utilization of VFAs and acetic acid in the bioeconomy, promoting sustainability.