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Wastewater Remediation via Modified Activated Carbon: A Review
2018
Hasan, M.B. | Hammood, Z.A.
The magnetic derivative of Activated Carbon (AC) is a promising new technique to isolate and recover consumed adsorbent. In this light, the current research seeks to summarise the magnetisation rout of AC and its applications, while identifying both benefits and drawbacks of different synthetic routs. Several methods, such as chemical co-precipitation, hydrothermal, impregnation, ball milling, and one-step synthetic routs, have been studied by previous researchers. Among these methods, chemical co-precipitation is simple, extensively adapted for Magnetic Activated Carbon (MAC) syntheses. In general, the magnetic derivatives of AC show a reduction in the surface area and pore volume, due to introduction of magnetic nanoparticles. Magnetisation enhances contaminants' adsorption, despite the reduction in surface area. It allows elimination of contaminants, barely treated by pristine AC due to the introduction of magnetic materials. Developments in synthetic procedures could overcome the destructive influence of acidity on MAC, providing a shield against it. MAC has been used in several applications, including organic and inorganic contaminant removal. Medically, MAC is used to lead drugs to a specific organ and, thus, reduce damages to non-affected organs. It can be said that the preparation method did not obstruct MAC application for specific contaminant adsorption. MAC regeneration has been reported for several sorption cycles, making the process sustainable and cost-effective. Future work could further develop the synthetic route and enhance the characteristics of the produced composite. It also may consider the influence of iron on the treated water, depending on its proposed usage.
Show more [+] Less [-]Estimation of Annual Effective Dose of 222 Rn and 220 Rn in indoor Air of Rohilkhand region, Uttar Pradesh state, India
2018
Rastogi, N. | Singh, I. | Goswami, V.
The annual exposure to indoor radon and thoron imparts a major contribution to inhalation doses received by the public. In this study, we report results of time integrated passive of indoor radon and thoron concentrations that were carried out in Rohilkhand region with health risk to the dwellers in the region. In present study, Solid State Nuclear Track Detectors (SSNTDS ) based twin chamber dosimeter with LR-115 track detector were used for estimating Radon (222Rn) and Thoron (220Rn) gas concentration levels in the dwellings of Moradabad city. The average Radon and thoron concentration levels in the studied dwellings were found to vary from 13.5 to 21.8 Bq m-3 and thoron concentrations is found to vary from 11.7 to 19.5 Bqm-3 and its corresponding geometric mean of equilibrium-equivalent 222Rn and 220Rn concentration were found 7.07 to 1.7 Bqm-3 . The total annual effective dose due to the exposure to radon and thoron was found to vary from3.7 to 6.2 mSv/y whereas from thoron found to vary from 0.3 to 0.61 mSv/y.
Show more [+] Less [-]Ecological risk assessment of heavy metals in Hurghada coastal sediment, Red Sea, Egypt
2018
Abdelkader, A. I. | Abuelregal, M. | El-Metwally, M.E. | Hassaan, M. A. | Sanad, E. F.
Twenty samples of Ø3, Ø4 and Ø5 (fine fractions) were collected from four coastal areas (Sheraton, Magawish, Marina and Al mina) in Hurghada, Egypt. Total organic matter (TOM), total organic carbon (TOC) and heavy metals were estimated in the recommended fractions. Results showed that Fe and Pb recorded the highest concentrations with 71.7 and 39 mg/kg respectively. Marina area fractions has the highest carbonate content varied between 50.7 and 65.7 while Magawish area fractions have the lowest organic matter content and carbonate between 10% and 9.40%. On the other hand, Sheraton area has the highest organic matter content. The Principal Component Analysis) PCA) indicate the anthropogenic sources of Zn and Pb at the Red Sea coast based on Sediment Quality Guidelines(SQGs).According to the Enrichment factor (EF) and the geo-accumulation factor (Igeo), Cu and Pb were the highest enriched elements due to anthropogenic contamination; consequently, the studied areas were classified as moderately to highly contaminate by Cu and Pb at Hurghada.
Show more [+] Less [-]Treatment of dairy wastewater by graphene oxide nanoadsorbent and sludge separation, using In Situ Sludge Magnetic Impregnation (ISSMI)
2018
Falahati, Faezeh | Baghdadi, Majid | Aminzadeh, Behnoush
The present research investigates the ability of graphene oxide nanosheets for treatment of dairy wastewater, using In Situ Sludge Magnetic Impregnation” (ISSMI) to separate sludge after adsorption process. To increase the interaction between magnetic nanoparticles and graphene oxide, the former has been functionalized, using 3-Aminopropyl triethoxysilane, with the synthesized graphene oxide and magnetic nanoparticles being characterized by FT-IR, SEM, and NCHS analysis. The experiments have been conducted on the effluent of Pegah factory. The batch adsorption experiments have been carried out to investigate the effect of adsorbent dose, contact time, and pH on the removal of total nitrogen, total phosphorus, COD, and turbidity. At adsorbent dose of 320 mg L-1, the removal efficiencies of 90, 80, 84, and 94% have been observed for TN, TP, COD, and turbidity, respectively. The adsorbent data has been modeled by Langmuir and Freundlich isotherms, giving results that are compatible with Freundlich isotherm. TN, TP, and COD are mostly particulate materials in dairy wastewaters; therefore, when nanosheets aggregate, particulate materials are trapped between GO nanosheets; as a result, pollutants are distributed heterogeneously on the adsorbent's surface. Consequently, adsorption does not occur as monolayer on the surface of GO; for this reason, adsorption follows Freundlich model. Maximum absorption capacity of the adsorbent turns out to be 730 mg g-1 for total nitrogen, 600 mg g-1 for total phosphorus, 26000 mg g-1 for COD, and 5500 mg g-1 for turbidity. Adsorption kinetic has been studied with the first and second order equation, giving results that are compatible with second order equation.
Show more [+] Less [-]Spatio-temporal variability of aerosol characteristics in Iran using remotely sensed datasets
2018
Rezaei, Mohammad | Farajzadeh, Manuchehr | Ghavidel, Yousef | Alam, Khan
The present study is the first attempt to examine temporal and spatial characteristics of aerosol properties and classify their modes over Iran. The data used in this study include the records of Aerosol Optical Depth (AOD) and Angstrom Exponent (AE) from MODerate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) and Aerosol Index (AI) from the Ozone Monitoring Instrument (OMI), obtained from 2005 to 2015. The high concentration of AOD and AI values (representing high-high cluster) have been observed in the southwest and east regions, while their low concentrations (representing low-low cluster) have been found in the high mountainous areas. Based on AE values, Iran has been divided into three distinct regions, including fine, mixture, and coarse aerosol modes in each season. Results show that the maximum/minimum area under fine aerosols mode has occurred in the autumn, covering an area of 84.15% and in the spring, covering an area of 40.5%. In the case of coarse mode, the maximum/minimum area has been found in the spring, covered area=53.5% / in the Autumn covered area=12. 5%. The different aerosol modes regions strongly coincide with the topographical structure. To analyze the relation between aerosol properties and topography, Aerosol Properties Index (API) has been developed by combining OMI and MODIS datasets. API is a simple indicator, capable of showing the degree of aerosol coarseness in each pixel. There is a negative correlation between API and topography over the studied region, meaning that aerosol concentrations are high in the lowlands, but low in the highlands. However, this relation differs in various geographic regions, as Geographically Weighted Regression (GWR) model shows a higher determination coefficient in all seasons, in comparison to Ordinary Least Squares (OLS).
Show more [+] Less [-]Soundscapes of Urban Parks in and around Bhubaneswar and Puri, Odisha, India: A Comparative Study
2018
Swain, Bijay | Goswami, Shreerup
Anthropogenic noise is debatably one of the most common threats to national parks' resources. Park visitors and workers generally suffer from adverse effects of noise from on- and off-road vehicles. The parks, studied here, are located in strictly urban areas, surrounded by streets with intense vehicle traffic. This study assesses the soundscape of urban parks in two cities of Odisha State, on the basis of acoustic field measurements and interviews. Noise descriptors in and around three different parks in Bhubaneswar and Puri cities have been measured and analyzed. A field experiment has been conducted with 330 participants in three parks, representing urban natural environment. The questionnaire comprised identification of the interviewee, characteristics of the user's profile in terms of his/her use of the park, and aspects of individual’s perception of the soundscape and environmental quality of the park. Positive correlation has been established among the noise levels of these three parks. The present study reveals that the acoustic sound levels of all the investigated parks are more than 50 dB (A) [permissible limit, established by Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) for green parks]. Considering the urban elements and acoustical characteristics, it can be concluded that all the parks are affected by several factors such as urban planning, land use, main traffic routes, type of public transportation, and its internal sounds.
Show more [+] Less [-]Assessment of Solid Waste Management Practices in Bahir Dar City, Ethiopia
2018
Birara, E. | Kassahun, T.
Even though solid waste management has become a major public health and environmental concern in urban areas of Ethiopia, only 2% of the population receive solid waste management services. The primary objective of this study is to assess solid waste management practices of Bahir Dar City. The technique of multistage random sampling has been employed to draw 350 households for this study, with both quantitative and qualitative primary data put into good use. Finally, the quantitative data has been analyzed by means of descriptive statistics with the results indicating that 78% of the respondents feel that the current solid waste management service is far below the required level; whereas, 22% of the respondents show satisfaction with the existing waste management service. The municipality has planned to provide solid waste management service for the residents once a week, but the survey results demonstrate that only 29% of the sample households received solid waste management services weekly, indicating that the performance of solid waste management service is low. Among 350 households, a sum of 66.6% practice illegal solid waste disposal with the remaining 33.4% waiting until solid waste collectors come to the area to take the waste away. Therefore, participation of urban households, micro and small enterprises, and governmental and non-governmental organizations plays a great role to upgrade the existing low status of solid waste management services.
Show more [+] Less [-]Emergence and Dispersion of Resistance Genes by the Aquatic Environment: a review
2018
Barcelos, D. H. F. | Knidel, Carina | Fernandes, C. G. L.
The association of the emergence of bacterial resistance to clinical environments is common; however, aquatic environments, especially the polluted ones, also play a key role in this regard. Aquatic environments can act as facilitator for the exchange of mobile elements, responsible for resisting antibiotics. They even may stimulate the emergence and selection of these elements through contaminants or the natural competition between bacterial phyla. Currently there is a large number of highly-reliable resistance genes, which is selected in aquatic environments, mostly due to several types of pollution, such as the mcr-1 gene that causes resistance to one of the antibiotics, available in the market, namely colistin. Thus, the present review aims to show a range of impacts capable of selecting bacterial resistance in the environment, thus clarifying this environment's role in dispersion of resistance.
Show more [+] Less [-]Environmental Situation of an Agricultural Area in Akure, Nigeria, Based on Physico-Chemical Properties of Rainwater
2018
Abulude, Francis | Ndamitso, M.M. | Abdulkadir, A
Acid rain still poses a global problem today, exerting many adverse effects on man, animal, and materials. As its research question, the present study tries to find out whether or not acid rains exist in Akure, Nigeria. For so doing, it determines physico-chemical properties of rain water samples, namely pH, temp, Electrical Conductivity (EC), TDS, acidity, SO4-, NO2-, Cl-, and Free CO2. According to the results, the pH ranged between 6.0 and 7.8, never falling below 5.6 which is an indication of acid rain. Also, the minimum EC was 3µS/cm and the maximum, 201µS/cm. Moreover, TDS was between 1 and 100mg/L, while Free CO2 had a mean of 23.00 and Standard Deviation of 6.16. The dominant ion was SO4- (10-11%), followed by NO3-, and Cl-. Results from the first six months (July-December 2015) reveal slight correlations in the following: TDS with pH (0.532), EC and pH (0.501), Temp and Free CO2 (0.59), whereas strong correlations have been recorded in the following parameters: Acidity with pH (0.71) and Temperature (0.69), NO2- with pH (0.96) and acidity (0.96), SO4- with temp (0.68) and NO2- (0.83), and finally Cl- with Free CO2 (0.61), NO2- (0.73), and Cl- (0.65). It can be concluded that in the environment under this study there have been no acid rain within the period.
Show more [+] Less [-]Experimental and Theoretical Study on the Ability of Microbial Fuel Cell for Electricity Generation
2018
Ali, Ahmed | Al-Mussawy, H.A. | Hussein, M.J. | Hamadi, N.J.
The present study aims at designing a promising Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) to utilize wastewater in order to generate electricity. Two types of salt bridge have been used in MFC (KCl and NaCl). The maximum electricity generation with 1M KCl and NaCl has been 823 and 713 mV, respectively. Varied salt concentrations (0.5M, 1M, 2M, and 3M) of salt bridge in MFC have been analyzed with different factors like temperature, type of electrode, configuration, and surface area of electrode being studied. The optimum temperature is found to be 32Co, with the optimum type of electrode being graphite rod, while the optimum configuration and surface area of electrode is graphite plate with surface area of 183.6 cm2. Artificial Neural Network (ANN) has been employed to predict voltage production of MFC and compare it with the experimental voltage. Multiple correlation methodology has optimized the voltage production with the correlation coefficient (R2) being 0.999.
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