ALBERT

Description: Siloxanes are used in industrial applications including electronics, automotive industry, textiles, construction, medical equipment, food packaging, medicine and cosmetics because of their antimicrobial properties, hydrophobicity and biocompatibility. Presence of siloxanes in landfill gas creates operational challenges at biogas-to-energy facilities due to accumulation of silicon oxides on engine components, increasing the energy recovery costs. In this study, the projected siloxane content in municipal solid waste was estimated based on the trends in patent applications for silicone-based products and siloxanes used in consumer products. Paper/paperboard and construction wood are the two waste categories with the highest silicone use. Based on the analyses of trends in silicone-based patents granted and silicone use in wood and paper, the quantities of siloxanes entering landfills are estimated to increase by approximately 29% in conjunction with a 5% increase in silicone-containing products within the next 10 years and 78% within the next 25 years. These projections take into account the lag time between the use of silicone in consumer products, product use period before being discarded and decomposition times in landfills. Graphical abstract

Description: The Arab world’s environment is among the most vulnerable and harsh ones across the globe. This entails much efforts to mitigate the potential environmental risks. Analysing contributions of Arab scholars in environmental research in terms of quantity and quality can bring up insights on their endeavours in this regard. Bibliometric techniques are proposed to conduct such this analysis over publications originated from Arab world in a leading environmental journal “Science of the Total Environment”. Research productivity is being used as quantitative indicator, while citation rates and Hirsch index ( h -index) are being used as qualitative indicators. The research outputs were compared with those obtained from non-Arab Middle Eastern countries (Iran, Turkey and Israel). Worldwide research productivity was 17,258 documents, while that from Arab countries, Iran, Turkey and Israel were 215, 34, 83 and 87 documents, respectively. The h -index of Arab world research was 31, and total citations were 3616 with an average of 16.8. The highest share of publications was recorded by Saudi Arabia (53 documents; 24.7%). Egypt and Saudi Arabia had highest h -index with 15 for each one. American University of Beirut in Lebanon was the highest productive institution (16; 7.4%). The most collaborated country with Arab world was France (29; 13.5%). In the conclusion, the study reveals a clear gap in terms of research productivity between Arab countries and other Middle Eastern countries, precisely Israel and Turkey. More research efforts through optimizing investments in environmental research, developing regional experiences and fostering international collaboration are required to eliminate these lags.

Description: Municipal solid waste poses a risk on surrounding environment and public health, mainly because of unscientific disposal and shortage of facilities for proper handling and recycling of leachate. This research article objective is to pinpoint the indigenous fungal isolates of waste leachate samples. Therefore, we carried out biosorption of Cd 2+ tested the applicability by applying indigenous fungal isolates. The limited number of fungal isolates was found based on their ability for biosorption of Cd 2+ metal. The fungal strains Trichoderma sp., Aspergillus niger and Aspergillus flavus were reported as potential strains for metal exclusion ability from the leachate. Among them, the Trichoderma sp. was found as excellent fungal agent for Cd 2+ absorption. The optimum pH was 5.5 ± 1, temperature 45 °C, and spore concentration 10 −5 to achieve the maximum biosorption, and 35 days of incubation period were required by three strains. The maximum metal biosorption achieved was comparable for the three isolates: 56.34% by Trichoderma sp., 44.74 and 42.04% by A. niger and A. flavus , respectively. Concluding, the further intending application to identified potentially fungal isolates is able to improve the efficiency of metal biosorption. These strains are recommended for development of consortia could become a best technique for MSW leachate treatment if its reliability and applicability should be verified prior to technology acceptance.

Description: In view of the mountainous evidence on destruction of environmental quality and societal well-being as a consequence of rapid economic development, sustainability has gained vast attention from the community and industrial players. Tertiary education is a platform through which sustainability can be inculcated within the society as it imparts knowledge and provides various trainings. There has been extensive research on factors that encourage sustainability integration into Institutions of Higher Education in the last decade. However, majority of the previous publications only discuss one or two factors exclusively and there is no literature that summarizes and discusses such factors in a collective manner. This paper provides an overview of the main factors that encourage sustainability integration into Institutions of Higher Education in the last decade. It aims at providing a one-stop reference for future researchers who need a reference on factors that encourage sustainability integration into Institutions of Higher Education, especially those who are interested in conducting a progressive research in this context. Accordingly, a review of relevant publications from year 2000 and above was conducted and it was found that there are generally eight main factors, which encourage sustainability integration into Institutions of Higher Education, which are: (1) integration into curricula; (2) suitable pedagogy; (3) campus management; (4) research; (5) opportunities provision; (6) availability of social capital; (7) awareness level; and (8) community outreach. There is no indicator on the impact level of these factors, and thus, it is suggested that relevant research can be conducted in future.

Description: The aim of this work was to investigate the effects of sorbent (natural and modified zeolite and bentonite, iron filings and ferric sulfate) on the speciation and bioavailability of arsenic in contaminated soil. The soil used in this experiment was collected from Zarshuran area (Western Azerbaijan province, NW Iran). The sorbents were added to the soil in various rates separately. After a month of incubation, sunflower was planted in pots. After harvest, soil and plant samples of each pot were analyzed. Then various species of arsenic were estimated in soil solutions by MINTEQ software program. Water-soluble arsenate, arsenite and exchangeable arsenic from each pot measured. The results showed that the sorbents had no effect on the speciation of arsenic. Mobility of arsenite in the soil solutions has not changed. Soils treated with natural bentonite and zeolite increased soluble arsenate concentration and decreased exchangeable arsenic concentration. Although Fe-zeolite increased soluble arsenate concentration, Fe-bentonite, iron filings and ferric sulfate decreased soluble arsenate concentration and exchangeable arsenic concentration. Finally, iron filings (containing 354 mmol Fe +3 ) vigorously increases in the plants biomass and decreases in the arsenic concentration in plants tissue, is suggested as the best sorbent for arsenic stabilization in the region.

Description: A hybrid dimensional analysis fuzzy inference system approach was introduced to predict blast-induced flyrock in surface mining, by integrating a dimensional analysis procedure and Mamdani’s fuzzy inference system. In the dimensional analysis, the blast-induced flyrock was considered as a function of the most effective parameters. Hence, a number of dimensionless products resulted and were used as input and output parameters of Mamdani’s fuzzy inference system. The capability of the hybrid approach was determined by comparing its results with the real measurement of flyrock in the case of a copper mine, based on a number of 320 in situ blasting datasets. Predictions by the system were close to the real measurements. Sensitivity analysis of the hybrid dimensional analysis fuzzy inference system showed that the most effective dimensionless products on flyrock distance were spacing, the multiplication of rock mass rating and hole length, and the subtraction of burden and hole length multiplication and stemming length.

Description: This review carries out a comparative study of advanced technologies to design, upgrade and rehabilitate wastewater treatment plants. The study analyzed the relevant researches in the last years about the moving bed biofilm reactor process with only attached biomass and with hybrid biomass, which combined attached and suspended growth; both could be coupled with a secondary settling tank or microfiltration/ultrafiltration membrane as a separation system. The physical process of membrane separation improved the organic matter and NH 4 + -N removal efficiencies compared with the settling tank. In particular, the pure moving bed biofilm reactor–membrane bioreactor showed average chemical oxygen demand, biochemical oxygen demand on the fifth day and total nitrogen removal efficiencies of 88.32, 90.84 and 60.17%, respectively, and the hybrid moving bed biofilm reactor–membrane bioreactor had mean chemical oxygen demand, biochemical oxygen demand on the fifth day and total nitrogen reduction percentages of 91.18, 97.34 and 68.71%, respectively. Moreover, the hybrid moving bed biofilm reactor–membrane bioreactor showed the best efficiency regarding organic matter removal for low hydraulic retention times, so this system would enable the rehabilitation of activated sludge plants and membrane bioreactors that did not comply with legislation regarding organic matter removal. As the pure moving bed biofilm reactor–membrane bioreactor performed better than the hybrid moving bed biofilm reactor–membrane bioreactor concerning the total nitrogen removal under low hydraulic retention times, this system could be used to adapt wastewater treatment plants whose effluent was flowed into sensitive zones where total nitrogen concentration was restricted. This technology has been reliably used to upgrade overloaded existing conventional activated sludge plants, to treat wastewater coming from textile, petrochemical, pharmaceutical, paper mill or hospital effluents, to treat wastewater containing recalcitrant compounds efficiently, and to treat wastewater with high salinity and/or low and high temperatures.

Description: Plastics are polymeric materials, and their disposal is a great problem in today’s society. Large quantities of single-use plastics are used every minute throughout the world. Peroxidase enzymes play a significant role in the biodegradation of polymeric materials due to oxidoreductase capability. The objective is to determine which set of conditions optimize the production of peroxidase enzymes by Phanerochaete chrysosporium so as to degrade polymeric materials. The sequential order of parameters in terms of their relevant performance in the bioprocess was determined as urea 〉 polyvinyl chloride 〉 incubation time 〉 polyethylene 〉 veratryl alcohol 〉 sucrose 〉 ammonium sulfate 〉 glucose 〉 ferrous sulfate and polystyrene. Statistical analysis was performed by using analysis of variance which indicated the significance of model Plackett–Burman and components on the basis of F value and P value of 0.012678 〈 0.05. The Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy of enzyme-treated polymer revealed structural changes at 1091, 1638 cm −1 . A new peak appeared at wave number 1029 and represented the aromatic ether and phenolic group as compared to control. Biosynthesis of lignin peroxidase at optimized conditions has the potential for biodegradation of recalcitrant polymeric waste, due to its oxidoreductase capability for chemically inert material in nature like lignin and can be used for waste treatment on a large scale.

Description: The present study deals with the capability of pulp industry wastewater to produce bioelectricity with isolation and screening of native electrogenic bacteria from wastewater. In the screening process, three bacterial isolates were obtained; they were studied on the basis of morphology and biochemical characteristics. The maximum bioelectricity producing bacteria was identified by sequencing method and was identified as Pseudomonas fluorescens , and it is a novel bacteria reported in bioelectricity production from pulp industry wastewater. Further, the work focuses on optimization of various parameters, i.e., inoculum size, pH, temperature, mediators and its concentration. It was observed that with pulp industry wastewater, inoculum size of 1.5% gave the maximum voltage and current of 1.244 ± 0.003 d  V and 5.946 ± 0.005 d  mA, respectively. A pH of 7.0 gave maximum voltage and current of 0.956 ± 0.009 e  V and 2.692 ± 0.016 e  mA. At 35 °C temperature, maximum production of voltage and current of 1.045 ± 0.003 d  V and 2.167 ± 0.037 d  mA were recorded. Among the various mediators, humic acid was found to be most effective as it produced a voltage of 1.054 ± 0.004 f  V and current of 1.070 ± 0.004 d  mA. Maximum voltage of 1.291 ± 0.021 f  V and current of 1.896 ± 0.006 f  mA were recorded with 200 μM of humic acid. Physicochemical analysis of the effluent was conducted before and after experimental run, and the values suggested that the microbial fuel cell technology is an efficient method for biological treatment of wastewater.

Description: The article presents the impact of external conditions on the parameters of the air inside the flats and hybrid ventilation. In the vast majority of existing multifamily buildings, as well as in many newly built ones, the way of air exchange is natural ventilation. The air exchange in this system is the result of the temperature difference in the outside of the building and in the ventilation duct as well as the pressure difference caused by the wind. The way to strengthen the exchange of indoor air is to use the hybrid ventilation by using a fan to assist natural air flow in the “no wind” periods. When designing the natural ventilation installation, the extreme conditions outside the building are assumed, not including air parameters changing. This article attempts to identify the conditions of atmospheric air which cause the disturbances of exchange indoor air and it attempts to decide when a fan should work to assist natural ventilation.

Description: Hazard analysis is the first step in any disaster management activity. Drought is a serious environmental hazard strongly limiting the agricultural production in the tropical countries like India. A comprehensive drought hazard map is useful for multiple perspectives such as agriculture, environment and hydrology. In this study, daily rainfall data of the Climate Prediction Centre during the south-west monsoon season (June–September) of 12 years, over India was analysed. Based on rainfall and rainy days, six indicators of drought were generated which were then synthesized into a composite index of drought hazard for every 10 × 10 km pixel. The weights for the composite index were generated through variance approach. The index has effectively captured the spatial variations in meteorological drought across India by showing a typical pattern with increasing hazardous area from east to west. The drought hazard map also shows considerable agreement with the climate classification map and the drought proneness map reported by other studies. Thus, the current study presents a simple and novel approach for drought hazard analysis, using the routinely available geospatial rainfall data products. The methodology can be extended to other geographies and disasters too. Use of time series data of longer period would improve the reliability of the composite drought hazard index.

Description: The purpose of this research was to test the ability of selected fungus Trichoderma harzianum for municipal solid waste leachate treatment. The research carried out by inoculating the enzyme produced by T. harzianum with different ratio (10% up to 80% v/v) of solid waste leachate. The findings clearly indicated that the enzymatic addition was effectively acted (86.09% of chemical oxygen demand removed), and the rate of chemical degradation amended treatment enhanced as compared to control. Also, the enzymatic addition excellently reduced the inhibition of germination (35.8 ± 0.7) of seed ( Zea mays L.) and improved the environmental quality of treated leachate. Therefore, these results can be use to articulate the preliminary feedstock for pilot to field-scale application.

Description: Dust storms are one of the natural sources for aerosol particles, especially in desert regions. The arid and semi-arid regions around Saudi Arabia are some of the most important sources of global dust. In this paper, we have quantitatively studied the influence of several dust storms on solar radiation components and meteorological variables. Global, direct and diffuse solar radiation data, in addition to measurements of relative humidity, air temperature, precipitable water vapor, aerosol optical depth and an Angstrom exponent for the period between 1999 and 2002, were used for the purpose of this study. During this period, 34 dusty events were selected, and their effects on these parameters were characterized. We have found that, dust storms significantly increase aerosol optical depth and the diffuse radiation and decrease the global and direct solar radiation components and Angstrom exponent. On the other hand, dusty events affect air temperature, relative humidity and precipitable water vapor differently. They intensify these variables in some events and reduce them in others. We have found that the amount of changes in these variables varies from one event to another. Several possibilities, such as the source of the dust storm and the season in which it occurred, have been suggested to explain these variations.

Description: Groundwater is the major source of freshwater in region devoid of surface water resources. Once such region is the Morappur area, Dharmapuri district of Tamilnadu, wherein groundwater is major source of water for all purposes. The area is reported to be severely affected by fluorosis due to excessive Fluoride in groundwater. The area comprises of rocks of Archaean age, namely Charnockite, Epidote Hornblende Gneiss and ultramafic rocks. The area has experienced numerous tectonic disturbances in which numbers of vertical joints have developed and are filled with quartz/feldspathic veins, and highly mineralised. Two aquifer systems have been identified in the area, namely the weathered aquifer and fractured aquifer. In order to understand the factors controlling high Fluoride concentration in groundwater, 149 groundwater samples were collected during pre and post-monsoon period. Analytical results indicate that 35% groundwater samples show Fluoride concentration more than 1.5 ppm (permissible limit). Results indicate that both the aquifer units are affected by high Fluoride and deeper aquifers are more affected. Biotite and Hornblende minerals present in the area and interact with groundwater to release Calcium, Magnesium along with Fluoride. Further chloro-alkaline indices indicate that calcium ions are replaced by sodium due to reverse ion exchange, leading to high concentration of Fluoride along with high concentration of Sodium. Government has taken measures to provide Fluoride-free drinking water from distant surface water sources. However, it is important to follow certain water management methods to improve the groundwater quality.

Description: A biochar derived from the pyrolysis of excess sludge of sewage treatment plant at 700 °C was used to remove phenanthrene and pyrene from aqueous solution. The adsorption equilibrium for phenanthrene and pyrene was achieved within 7.5 and 15 h, respectively. The adsorption kinetics of phenanthrene and pyrene were well fitted to pseudo-second-order model, and the isotherms were well fitted to Freundlich adsorption isotherm model ( R 2  〉 0.96). The effect of variation of pH on the adsorption of the biochar was observed to be insignificant. The hydrophobic action and pore filling might be the main mechanisms of the adsorption of phenanthrene and pyrene on the biochar. The density functional theory calculations confirmed that the adsorption depended mainly on the biochar structure and the molecular volumes of phenanthrene and pyrene. Phenanthrene molecule is smaller than the pyrene molecule and therefore showed better adsorption characteristics with the biochar than the pyrene molecule.

Description: Redox properties of humic substances (HS) control important biogeochemical processes. Thus, accurate estimation of redox properties of HS is essential. However, there is no general consensus regarding the best available measurement method of HS redox properties. In this study, we compared several common HS redox property measurement methods using anthraquinone-2,6-disulfonate (AQDS) as model compound, and standard Elliot soil humic acid (1S102H, ESHA), reference Pahokee peat (1R103H, PPHA), and Suwannee River natural organic matter (1R101N, SRNOM) as representative HS. We found that the H 2 /Pd reduction method followed by incubation with ferric citrate (FeCit) reagent was incomplete, and the H 2 /Pd reduction method followed by incubation with potassium ferricyanide (K 3 Fe(CN) 6 ) was insensitive. Stannous chloride (SnCl 2 ) reduction followed by titration of excess stannous (Sn 2+ ) by potassium dichromate (K 2 Cr 2 O 7 ) was found to be most accurate. These findings will help in future investigations on detailed characterizations of functional groups of HS responsible for oxidation/reduction reactions.

Description: A low-cost visible light-driven silver/titanium oxide/expanded perlite (Ag/TiO 2 /EP) as a floating plasmonic photocatalyst is fabricated by a simple hydrolysis method. Photocatalytic properties of Ag/TiO 2 /EP have been studied by scanning electron microscope, X-ray diffraction, UV–Vis (DRS), EDAX, FTIR, chemiluminescence, photoluminescence and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy methods. The photocatalytic activity of resulting Ag/TiO 2 /EP with different Ag contents (3 and 5%) was evaluated by its ability to degrade furfural solution under visible light irradiation. The Ag/TiO 2 /EP exhibits wide absorption in the visible light region and shows visible light-driven photocatalytic activities in furfural degradation compared with TiO 2 /EP photocatalyst. The Ag/TiO 2 /EP (5%) was the best concentration of photocatalyst dosage with almost 80% furfural degradation under visible light. The antibacterial character of Ag/TiO 2 /EP with different Ag contents has been tested against Escherichia Coli under visible light. The photocatalytic activity of Ag/TiO 2 /EP can be attributed to the plasmonic effect of silver in the separation of photoinduced electrons and holes in resulting photocatalyst. The Ag/TiO 2 /EP (5%) as a floating photocatalyst combined with its ability to absorb visible light makes it of significant interest for the purification of industrial wastewater.

Description: Contamination by hexavalent chromium has had a large impact on modern society and human health. This problem is a consequence of its great industrial applicability to several products and processes. Short-term exposure to hexavalent chromium can cause irritation, ulceration in skin and stomach and in addition to cancer, dermatitis, and damage to liver, renal circulation and nervous tissues, with even death being observed in response to long-term exposures. Many techniques have been used for the remediation of this pollutant, including physical and chemical approaches and, in more recent years, biological methods. Filamentous fungi isolated from contaminated sites exhibit a significant tolerance to heavy metal; hence, they are an important source of microbiota capable of eliminating hexavalent chromium from the environment. However, these microorganisms can do so in different ways, including biosorption, bioreduction, and bioaccumulation, among others. In this review, we explore several of the most documented mechanisms that have been described for fungi/hexavalent chromium interactions and their potential use in bioremediation.

Description: Tarap peel (TP) and oxalic-acid-modified Tarap peel (TP-OX) were used to remove brilliant green (BG) dye from aqueous solution. Surface modification of TP suggested that functional groups such as carboxyl, hydroxyl and amino were involved in the adsorption of BG onto TP. Parameters such as effects of pH, contact time, ionic strength, initial dye concentration and temperature were included to study the adsorption of BG onto TP and TP-OX. Adsorption isotherm models were used to investigate the adsorption process, while kinetics models were used to provide insight into the adsorption mechanisms. Optimised contact time of 2 h with no pH adjustment was used. Adsorption of BG onto TP was best fitted to the Freundlich model, while experimental data for TP-OX are best described by the Tempkin model. The maximum adsorption capacities were determined as 174 and 275 mg g −1 for TP and TP-OX, respectively. Thermodynamics study indicated the endothermic nature of adsorptions of BG onto both adsorbents. According to kinetics study, the adsorption mechanisms on both adsorbents followed pseudo-second-order model, and film diffusion might have major role in the adsorption process.

Description: Anthropogenic activities often result in the emissions of methane (CH 4 ) and carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) which are the principal components of greenhouse gases. The mitigation of these gases to avert further occurrence of global warming has attracted a lot of research interest. In this study, the potential of greenhouse gases abatement via catalytic CO 2 (dry) reforming of methane to syngas over samarium oxide-supported cobalt (20 wt% Co/80 wt% Sm 2 O 3 ) catalyst was investigated. The 20 wt% Co/80 wt% Sm 2 O 3 material was synthesized via wet impregnation method and characterized using different instrument techniques. The methane dry reforming reaction, as well as its kinetics over the catalyst, was studied in a stainless steel fixed-bed continuous flow reactor at feed (CH 4 :CO 2 ) ratios range of 0.1–1.0, temperature range of 923–1023 K and gas hourly space velocity (GHSV) of 30,000 h −1 . The 20 wt% Co/80 wt% Sm 2 O 3 catalyst showed promising catalytic activity evident from the highest CH 4 and CO 2 conversion of ~71 and ~74% as well as the highest hydrogen (H 2 ) and carbon monoxide (CO) yield of ~62 and ~73%, respectively. Moreover, the methane dry reforming over the 20 wt% Co/80 wt% Sm 2 O 3 catalyst produces H 2 /CO ratio close to unity hence suitable for use as a chemical intermediate for synthesis of oxygenated fuels. The kinetic data obtained from the methane dry reforming were fitted to power law model. Apparent activation energies of 88.62, 80.12, 108.12 and 100.91 kJ mol −1 were obtained for CH 4 , CO 2 , H 2 and CO, respectively. The characterization of the spent 20 wt% Co/80 wt% Sm 2 O 3 catalyst after 4 h of time-on-stream has confirmed the presence of amorphous carbon which can easily be gasified.

Description: With different properties, zinc is one of the most important non-ferrous metals and it is used in various application areas, especially as an anti-corrosion agent. In Turkey, zinc production was based on zinc carbonate ores (ZnCO 3 ), at Çinkur plant from establishment to 1997 due to high reserves of zinc carbonate. After that, zinc concentrate coming from Iran was used in this plant over the last two decades. Thus, two different leach residues called as Turkish leach residue (TLR) and Iranian leach residue (ILR) were accumulated more than one million ton in Çinkur stock piles. In this study, it is aimed to investigate zinc recovery for each leach residue by use of sulphuric acid (H 2 SO 4 ) and to compare the TLR and the ILR. Initially, detailed chemical, mineralogical and thermal analyses of these different leach residues were carried out. In order to investigate the effect of acid concentration and reaction duration on zinc recovery, leaching experiments were carried out at following conditions: 95 °C, 100 g/L pulp density and 600 rpm stirring rate. According to the characterization results, the chemical compositions for both residues are nearly similar; however, experimental results show that zinc recovery per cent of the ILR was higher than that of TLR for all experimental durations and acid concentrations. This may be due to the presence of Zn-containing compounds in the both residues at different percentages.

Description: The problem regarding environment has been considered as contemporary issue, and to cater this, various technologies have been revolutionized in vehicle transport field. Efforts have been made to make vehicle engine efficient and introducing hybridized vehicles with the aim of reducing emissions and less fuel dependency. In essence of this, trends of solar electric cars in different countries have been reviewed. Feasibility analysis is done by doing fuel cost analysis of two cases, i.e., simple hybrid vehicle and hybrid vehicle equipped with solar module and increased battery energy storage capacity for a specific round trip distance between two cities, i.e., Rawalpindi and Islamabad in comparison with feasibility of third case, i.e., proposed solar electric car model. The solar module selection along with desired number of batteries with charging and discharging time and motor power required to carry five persons weight (70 kg each) is calculated for third case. Moreover, total carbon dioxide emission analysis has been carried out from car material production to its assembly, manufacturing solar module and nickel metal hydride battery for each case. The annual carbon dioxide emitted from fuel in first two cases relative to electric outlet in third case for specific distance has been analyzed. On large scale, emission analyses for hundred cars of each case have been done at 100 km distance. From calculations, it is revealed that overall emissions in third case on large scale and from its material production, assembly, solar module and batteries manufacturing perspective are comparatively less than other cases.

Description: The main aim of this work is to study the effect of scaling in the biosorption of chromium(VI) onto olive stone in two different fixed-bed columns. Firstly, the effect of flow rate, bed depth and inlet concentration of Cr(VI) in both columns was analyzed. The results revealed a better operation for lower flow rates, higher bed heights and lower inlet concentrations of metal. When decreasing flow rate, the operation time of the column increases. Therefore, as the solution flow rate increased the breakthrough and the exhaustion times decreased. An increase in bed depth increases the quantity of chromium eliminated and thus, the higher sorption capacity of the system. A decrease in the inlet concentration of chromium produces a delay in exhaustion time, and larger volumes of solution could be treated. The results were fitted to the BDST model, obtaining that the adsorptive capacity of the bed depth is similar in laboratory- and pilot-scale fixed-bed columns, considering the biosorption capacity as a biosorption-coupled reduction process. Results also could indicate that scaling affects more to the reduction process than properly biosorption process. The experimental data were also fitted to Adams–Bohart, Thomas, Yoon–Nelson and dose–response models. A good fit of the biosorption process of Cr(VI) was found for dose–response and Adams–Bohart models.

Description: Physical online sensors are widely used in wastewater treatment plants. The high costs of acquisition and maintenance as well as the delayed response due to long hydraulic retention times, applications of some physical online sensors are limited. Consequently, studies on developing software sensors have been drawn much attentions these years. Aiming to predict treatment results after water is coagulated, and this paper focuses on developing a software sensor of outlet turbidity for coagulation process. Solution to address the potential non-plug flow conditions in sedimentation tanks is discussed. Model validation results show that the proposed software sensor has 86% of accuracy within the main working range. This paper expresses a novel concept that what the proposed software sensor predicted has been not formed in the coagulation process. Since the software sensor enables to know the treatment results without waiting for long hydraulic retention time of sedimentation tank, it not only shortens the response time of manual dosing control but also serves as a feedback parameter to define optimal dosage for coagulant dosing control systems.

Description: Methylene blue color is a cationic dye which is used in textile industry. Health effects of methylene blue dye discharge into the environment is including toxicity, high color, reduced light penetration in water, high stability, and low degradation capability. So, removing it from the environment is extremely important. The aim of this study was to synthesize Uio-66 MOFs used for adsorption of methylene blue from synthetic sample. The synthesized UiO-66 MOFs were characterized by using XRD, FE-SEM, EDAX, and BET analyses. Various parameters were evaluated such as pH, initial MB concentration, reaction time, and adsorbent dose. The findings showed that the sizes of Uio-66 crystals were between 153 and 213 nm. Total pore volume, BET, and Langmuir surface area were found to be 657, 906 m 2  g −1 , and 0.446 m 3  g −1 , respectively. Zeta potential of Uio-66 was equal to 6. As a result, at higher than zeta potential point, methylene blue adsorption on Uio-66 is favorable. Maximum adsorption has been achieved at the pH = 9. The maximum adsorption capacity of Uio-66 for methylene blue was 91 mg/g. Optimum dose of Uio-66 was 0.4 g L −1 for methylene adsorption. The Langmuir I isotherm was a fit model to describe the adsorption isotherm. Pseudo-first-order kinetic model was a fit model to describe the adsorption kinetic of MB on Uio-66. The Uio-66 MOF is a promising adsorbent in the adsorption of methylene blue from aqueous solution. Graphical Abstract

Description: A chemometric approach coupled with capillary electrophoresis based on the hierarchical cluster analysis and principal component analysis has been applied for the investigation of the water quality in the Golcuk-Isparta region (Lake District of Turkey). In the research area, Egirdir Lake, Golcuk Lake and surrounding ground and domestic waters have been utilized as drinking water resources. Golcuk Lake is distinctive in terms of high fluoride content (3.50 ± 0.21 mg/mL) which is endemic in volcanic areas where the water flow through volcanic rocks and sediments. Based on the analysis of major anions chloride, sulfate, nitrate and fluoride with capillary electrophoresis, twenty-four drinking water sampling sites in the research area were classified into four classes using the hierarchical cluster and principal component analysis. Combining the research area investigation results of hierarchical cluster and principal component analysis, it was found that fluoride concentration is the major diagnostic variable to determine the quality of drinking waters, and all the other anions are the important classification factors to predict the resources of the drinking water samples, individually. To sum up, this study reveals the potential of the use of capillary electrophoresis in combination with chemometric techniques for the determination of the quality and origin of drinking waters.

Description: This paper presents a hydrodynamic characterization of helically coiled tube flocculators (HCTFs) through streamline analysis and an efficiency evaluation of the flocculation process in these units. Physical experiment and CFD modeling allowed to relate flocculation process (estimated indirectly by analyzing turbidity removal efficiency for low turbidity values and low Reynolds numbers) and hydrodynamic characteristics observed along the unit (represented in this study by streamlines). This work analyzes streamline features and proposes the use of a new global hydrodynamic parameter \(\overline{{E_{\text{k}} }}\) , concerning the average specific kinetic energy in a representative streamline of the unit, aiming to compare hydrodynamic characteristics in units with distinct hydraulic and geometric characteristics. Results show that this parameter has a strong adherence with the maximum turbidity removal efficiency observed in HCTFs. Moreover, it was possible to define an optimum range of velocity variation cycles in the representative streamline to achieve the maximum turbidity removal efficiency. This result indicates that knowledge of HCTFs streamlines’ characteristics can support the rational design of this type of unit.

Description: The Billion Oyster Project is a New York City-wide effort to reintroduce eastern oysters back into the New York Harbor and help improve water quality by reducing heavy metal concentrations in the environment. In particular, the bioaccumulation of mercury in oyster tissue was investigated in the New York Harbor oysters acquired from two sites. Mercury levels exceed the standard Environmental Protection Agency-recommended levels as the New York Harbor oysters exhibit mercury levels ranging from 0.36 ± 0.05 to 0.55 ± 0.08 μg Hg g −1 dry weight. In an ideal scenario, one billion of these oysters are roughly projected to capture a maximum of 110 g of mercury from the New York Harbor by 2030, assuming an average uptake of 0.55 μg Hg g −1 dry weight for every oyster added to the reef. In addition to the bioaccumulation of mercury within the oyster tissue, stunted physical growth of the oysters and abnormal discoloration of the tissue indicate the presence of other heavy metals. This study demonstrates the promising role that eastern oysters play in removing heavy metals, such as mercury, from their water environment and preview significant and measurable impacts on the ecosystem. Graphical Abstract

Description: Municipal wastes collected in landfills are a significant source of air contamination and frequently characterize by elevated concentrations of different fungi. Posing a serious health threat to landfill workers and local residents, the fungal aerosol has to be monitored with respect to its quantity and quality. In this study, concentrations of airborne fungi, their particle size distribution, species composition and the presence of cytotoxic strains of Aspergillus fumigatus were assessed in different sites within the landfill area. The quantitative and qualitative changes in the fungal aerosol were determined with respect to a season and landfill activity level (i.e. exploitation or standstill periods). Within the landfill area, particular sites were grouped with regard to airborne fungi concentrations and similarities in species composition. The qualitative analysis indicated that 43 species were shared during both sampling times, and only nine species were characteristic for the standstill period. Among fungal isolates, 21 strains of A. fumigatus revealed cytotoxic activity expressed at different levels, depending on the fungal extract concentrations used in the MTT assay. The results suggested that exposure (especially in summer) to small airborne particles, containing distinct species, may occur not only in the active sector but also in close vicinity to the landfill. Hence, microbial monitoring of the landfill and surrounding area should be carried out taking into account both quantitative aspect supplemented by size distribution analysis and qualitative features, especially of those strains possessing cytotoxic activity.

Description: The use of mineral magnetic techniques as pollution proxy for road deposited sediment was explored using various statistical approaches. Standard techniques were adopted for measurement of mineral magnetic and geochemical parameters. The analyses of magnetic parameters revealed that the samples were dominated by ferrimagnetic minerals and multidomain grains. This implied that the magnetic fractions in the samples might be of anthropogenic origin. Results also indicate that the samples were dominated by low coercive, magnetically soft minerals. Thermomagnetic curves confirmed magnetite as the remanence bearing magnetic mineral having a Curie point temperature of ~580 °C. The strong association observed between magnetic susceptibility, susceptibility of anhysteric remanent magnetization and saturation isothermal remanent magnetization and aluminum, titanium, manganese, iron, chromium and lead demonstrated that these metals occurred as ferrimagnetic particles of technogenic origin resulting from vehicular sources. Assessment of pollution status of the road deposited sediment identified silicon and lead as the priority pollutants of concern. Generally, pollution load index was 〈1 (mean, 0.66 ± 0.14), indicating that the samples were not polluted in the overall, but the metals were in the buildup stage requiring constant monitoring. The sources of pollutants from principal component and cluster analyses identified the sources of pollution to be mainly from vehicular emissions such as brake linings, exhaust materials, tire wear, corroded metal parts, abrasion of lubricating oil and road construction materials. This study found that mineral magnetic techniques offer great potential as pollution proxy for soil pollution studies.

Description: Installation of biobed biopurification systems at farm level, traditionally composed of soil, peat and straw, to reduce point source contamination is difficult in some countries where peat is not environmentally or economically feasible. This study evaluates the use of local organic wastes from olive oil production such as wet olive cake and its vermicompost as substitutes of peat and olive tree pruning as substitute of straw to perform robust biobeds capable of removing mixtures of pesticides at high concentrations. Adsorption capacity of the novel biomixtures was comparable to or higher than traditional one. The biomixture with soil and olive tree pruning showed the highest pesticides adsorption, except for imidacloprid. The biomixture with soil, vermicompost and olive tree pruning showed dissipation efficiency of dimethoate, imidacloprid and oxyfluorfen (〉73%) higher than traditional biobed . Meanwhile, the biomixture with soil and vermicompost was the alternative biomixture with the highest dissipation of diuron (54%) and tebuconazole (35%) but it was lower than traditional biomixture (59 and 47% for diuron and tebuconazole, respectively). The low dissipation of these compounds (〈60%) is probably due to competitive and/or inhibitory phenomena between the pesticides in the mixture. Labile organic compounds from biomixture components such as water-soluble carbon constitute a more available carbon source for microorganisms that may counteracted the negative impact of high pesticide load on biomixture microbial populations, but they may have limited the pesticides dissipation. Novel biomixtures composed of olive oil mill waste may be a sustainable and less expensive alternative to traditional biomixture.

Description: Today’s organizations, industries and research centers are geographically distributed in different sites. To achieve true knowledge of business, mining massive amounts of data is necessary. In earth-related sciences such as meteorology, the date obtained from the various types of sensors is huge because of the high-frequency rate of data acquisition process and also the geographical distribution of weather stations. Therefore, the data mining and knowledge discovery process of this big and distributed data is a challenging work. In this paper, we propose a new distributed data mining approach called multi-agent hierarchical data mining to classify meteorology data, which has been collected from different sites widely distributed around the country (Iran). Our method utilizes a modified version of REPTree algorithm, which has been optimized to work in multi-agent system. To evaluate the proposed approach, it is implemented on 20 million of meteorology data record. Experimental results show that multi-agent hierarchical data mining approach can achieve significant performance improvement over centralized and parallel methods for knowledge discovery in large amounts of data.

Description: In this work, synthesis of chitosan beads impregnated with nano-γ-Al 2 O 3 (AlCB) was carried out. The characteristics of the synthesized adsorbent were obtained by using Brunauer Emmett and Teller technique and Scanning Electron Microscopy method. The use of AlCB in continuous removal of chromium, lead, nickel and cadmium ions from liquid solution was studied using fixed-bed column system. Bed depths and flow rate effects on breakthrough and uptake capacity of the adsorbent in column were also examined. Dynamic parameters of the adsorption were calculated by using bed depth service time (BDST) and Thomas models. In both models, the data were analyzed by error analyzing and combining the values of determined coefficient ( R 2 ) from regression analysis. The adsorption capacities of AlCB in breakthrough were 158.33, 183.33, 63.33 and 31.67 mg/g for chromium, lead, nickel and cadmium, respectively. In addition, BDST model was found to be an acceptable kinetic model to describe the experimental data.

Description: In this study, the performance of moving-bed biofilm sequencing batch reactor in operating the anaerobic/anoxic/oxic (A 2 O) process for treatment of wastewaters containing nitrogen and phosphorous was evaluated. For this purpose, a pilot system with two bench-scale sequencing batch reactors with a total volume of 30 L and functional volume of 10 L was used. The installation was elaborated using plexiglass, in which 60% of the functional volume consisted of PVC suspended carriers (Kaldnes K3) with a specific surface area of 560 m 2 /m 3 . The independent variables used in this study were hydraulic retention time (HRT) (1.5, 2, 2.5, 3, and 3.5 h) and the initial organic load (300, 500, 800, 1000 mg O 2 /L). The results showed impressive performance in the case of an initial organic load of 300 mg O 2 /L and HRT of 3 h with maximum removal of COD and TN, respectively, by 95.1 and 89.8%. In the case of an initial organic load of 1000 mg O 2 /L and HRT of 3.5 h, the maximum total phosphorus removal was 72.3%. Therefore, according to the analysis of data obtained by different HRTs, it was revealed that the system of A 2 O has greater efficiency in removing organic matter from wastewater in the shortest possible time.

Description: Sewage treatment station in oilfield needs a new process to meet the desired requirements. A new process was proposed to meet the discharge standards, which consisted of the following sub-processes: electrochemical treatment → coagulation treatment → integrated biochemical treatment of moving bed biofilm reactor and membrane bio-reactor → combined treatment process of macroporous adsorption resin. Electrochemical treatment included 5 electrolytic cells, total volume of which was 10 L. The PFS was chosen as the coagulants in the coagulation treatment, and the removal rate of COD could reach 66% when the dosage of PFS was 500 mg/L. The biochemical treatment consisted of anoxic tank, aerobic tank and membrane zone, and the removal rate of COD was about 55–70% when HRT was 12 h. SD300 resin was chosen as the best adsorbent in the treatment using macroporous adsorption resin. In addition, the effluent COD after coagulation treatment process becomes about 180 mg/L, the effluent COD after biological treatment becomes about 50 mg/L, and the last effluent COD with the macroporous adsorption resin becomes about 20 mg/L. The three-dimensional fluorescence spectrum was used to analyze the differences in types of organic matters in water samples between the raw water and the treated one. The results demonstrated that the new process meets the needs of wastewater treatment.

Description: Climate change and pollution are the most vulnerable stressors that are anticipated increasingly to affect all living organisms including fishes. The aquatic ecosystems are the most affected ecosystem due to contamination and global increasing temperature. In view of the above, the present study delineates 96-h median lethal concentration of heavy metal, lead alone and in combination with high temperature (34 °C) by conducting static non-renewable acute toxicity bioassay in Pangasius hypophthalmus (average weight 3.65 ± 0.75 g). Further, the effect of different definitive doses (80, 82, 84, 86, 88 and 90 mg/L) of lead alone and high temperature on cellular metabolic response was probed. The LC 50 of lead was found to be 84.93 mg/L, whereas in combination with high temperature it was 83.10 mg/L in P. hypophthalmus . Catalase, superoxide dismutase and glutathione-S-transferase were noticeably higher ( p  〈 0.01) in liver, gill and brain during lead exposure alone and in combination with high temperature. The activities of aspartate aminotransferase and alanine aminotransferase were significantly enhanced ( p  〈 0.01) in muscle, liver and gill in dose- and time-dependent manners in lead-alone-exposed and in combination with high-temperature groups. The brain and liver acetylcholine esterase activities showed noticeable ( p  〈 0.01) inhibition from 80 to 90 mg/L exposure of lead alone and with concurrent exposure to temperature than the control group. Overall results clearly indicate that acute exposure of lead and high temperature led to pronounced deleterious alterations on cellular and metabolic activities of P. hypophthalmus .

Description: The functionalities of nano-materials are accompanied by features that are in collision with the postulates of environmental friendliness and sustainability. Nano-related research, part of which is nano-safety, is gaining momentum worldwide, but there is a limited body of knowledge about mechanisms such as the degradation, surface modification and transformation of nanoparticles. This study aims to provide a brief survey on the challenges that researchers and engineers face when attempting to assess the environmental impacts of nano-based products. The applicability of the life cycle assessment method to nanotechnology is briefly explored. The advancement of nano-specific life cycle approaches capable of evaluating the sustainability of these emerging technologies depends on further research on material inventories, the energy efficiency of manufacturing processes, the transport and fate of nanoparticles in the environment, health risks and mitigation techniques. Specialized nano-based product-related databases are still needed to track engineered nano-materials (ENMs) in the environment and to facilitate life cycle inventories and assessment. Permissible exposure limits for key ENMs in the workplace and standardized handling protocols for ENMs are not widely available. Properties that increase their toxicity and bioaccumulation are being increasingly investigated. The dissemination of information to the general public related to risk management is rather sporadic, and the suitability of current regulation for controlling environmental pollution by ENM is subject to continued discussion. Taking into account the environment health and safety challenges mentioned, a suitable expertise and information dissemination network is proposed to take the responsible application of nanotechnology forward in the developing world context.

Description: In order to make Mars a better planet, in this paper, photo-dissociation technology, mathematical modeling, and a series of chemical reaction methodology have been proposed to create a vibrant ecosystem and balance the atmosphere on Mars. Since CO 2 is a stable compound, breaking it down into C and O 2 always is challenging, but exciting thought. Interestingly, my recent research revealed that photo-dissociation by utilizing UVV (laser) could be an exciting technology to split CO 2 into C + O 2 since the theoretical reaction suggested that the production of C + O 2 channel from CO 2 photo-exciting technology releases the energetic level threshold of C( 3 P 2 ) + O 2 (X 3 ∑ g − ) that can be detected by ultraviolet laser pump-probe spectroscopy. Subsequently, a mathematical model for creating of ocean on Mars by breaking its substantial polar ice has been performed considering algorithms for surface and coordinate between the barotropic momentum and continuity equations, and interestingly the calculation suggested that it is very much possible to flow ocean on Mars surface to meet its water demand. Subsequently, proposed series of chemical reaction technology suggested that implementation of carbonator looping and plasma reaction paths can convert photo - dissociated carbon (C) into N 2 and NH 3 to enrich Mars’ soil in order to grow vegetation as well as to create a balance ecosystem in Mars eventually. Finally, sustainable green technology has been proposed for the development of Mars to be a complete balanced planet to deliver all basic and modern needs to run daily life smoothly. Thus, implication of chemical reaction technologies along with sustainable development plans can indeed make the Mars a vibrant environment to live there in clean and green.

Description: The ability of fluidized bed Fenton oxidation of Acid Yellow 36 (AY36) as an azo dye was investigated applying natural pyrite (NP) particles in a recirculating semi-pilot system. X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy and Brunauer–Emmett–Teller techniques were carried out for characterization of the pyrite. The decolorization percentage of AY36 in NP/H 2 O 2 procedure has been noticeably affected by operational conditions. The decolorization percentage of 92% was observed for the AY36 decolorization (15 mg/L) at the optimized conditions as suspension pH 4, 2 mM H 2 O 2 and 0.6 g/L NP after 120 min of the process time. The decolorization rate in whole of the runs obeyed the pseudo-first-order kinetic with proper correlation coefficients ( R 2  ≥ 0.98). The low leached iron amount, repeated reusability in the milder pH and the recirculation mode with adequate mix were the substantial benefits of the NP/H 2 O 2 utilization. Graphical abstract Schematic of designed fluidized bed reactor for heterogeneous Fenton process.

Description: In this study, the photocatalytic degradation of Congo red has been investigated in N-doped TiO 2 (N-TiO 2 ) aqueous suspensions under visible light irradiation. Visible light-active N-TiO 2 was successfully prepared at three different weight contents (2.5, 5, and 7%) employing sol–gel method. It was able to harvest the visible irradiation with wavelength suitable for activation. X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, energy-dispersive X-ray spectrometer, diffused reflectance UV–Vis spectroscopy, nitrogen adsorption Brunauer–Emmert–Teller, Raman spectroscopy, photoluminescence and X-ray photoelectron spectrometer were used to characterize the doped catalyst. The samples had a relatively large specific Brunauer–Emmert–Teller surface areas of about 42 m 2  g −1 with average X-ray diffraction crystalline size of 52 nm and showed visible light photocatalytic activity at about 408 nm. The impacts of several operating parameters on the Congo red photodegradation process were examined. Langmuir–Hinshelwood model exhibited pseudo-first-order degradation kinetics. N-TiO 2 -assisted plausible photodegradation mechanism has been suggested based on the qualitatively detected intermediate compounds.

Description: This review focuses on the various types of supports used for immobilization of titanium dioxide nanomaterial catalyst for degradation of organic pollutants in wastewater. Several supports suitable to particular immobilization technique used for the degradation of pollutants in wastewater streams are explained. In general, a coating of catalyst on supports is carried out either by physical (e.g., thermal treatment) or by chemical (e.g., sol–gel). Among a range of the supports used, some of the prominent ones include glass, silica, activated carbon, stainless steel, cellulose, clay. Also, characterization methods in use such as X-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscope, scanning electron microscope, and UV-spectroscopy are discussed. The operating parameters such as temperature for the selected immobilization techniques are also explained.

Description: The aim of this work was to evaluate the usefulness of Lemna minuta Kunth for the simultaneous removal of Cr(VI) and phenol. The impact of these contaminants on plant growth and some biochemical processes have also been discussed for a better understanding and utilization of this species in the field of phytoremediation. The optimal growth conditions and plant tolerance to Cr(VI) and/or phenol as well as removal were determined. Plants exposed to Cr(VI) and phenol were able to efficiently grow and remove both contaminants at high concentrations (up to 2.5 and 250 mg/L, respectively) after 21 days, indicating that they were resistant to mixed contamination. There were no significant differences between chlorophyll, carotene and malondialdehyde content of treated plants with respect to the controls, which would be due to an efficient antioxidant response. L. minuta showed a higher biomass than control without contaminant when was exposed to low concentrations of Cr(VI), suggesting an hormesis effect. The main removal process involved in chromium phytoremediation would be sorption or accumulation in the biomass. Moreover, our results suggest that phenol could be used as a donor of carbon and energy by these plants. These findings demonstrated that Lemna minuta Kunth might be suitable for treatment of different solutions contaminated with Cr(VI) and phenol, showing a high potential to be used in the treatment of effluents containing mixed contamination.

Description: The health risks presented by noxious vehicle emissions inside tunnels has been amplified due to the increasing use of roadway tunnels. Particularly, for adjacent roadway tunnels, vehicular emissions from the upstream tunnel can further deteriorate the air quality within the following tunnels. A scale vehicle tunnel model was designed to experimentally modelled the airflow and pollutants dispersion in contiguous roadway tunnels. The channelling effect on pollutants dispersion between adjacent roadway tunnels was studied, and factors such as ventilation speed, open road section length, traffic condition (e.g. car free, car running and traffic congestion) were considered. Pollutants mass flow rate ratio between downstream and upstream tunnels was calculated to evaluate the variation of the entrained pollutants amount. For the car free condition, pollutant can be easily entrained into the downwind tunnel when the gap distance between roadway tunnels decreased. For the car running condition with fixed tunnel gap distance, the traffic speed variation barely changed the pollutants mass flow rate ratio. Furthermore, evident influences on pollutants concentration were observed from continuous congestion and partial congestion. Lastly, numerical simulation using computational fluid dynamics approach was conducted for the car free scenario, and reasonably good agreements were found for pollutants concentration ratio compared with the experimental data. The results yielded from this study further quantified the relationships among different influential factors on the pollutants dispersion between roadway tunnels, and can contribute to an improved tunnel ventilation system design, especially for the downstream tunnel.

Description: In the last years, it has been proven that zero-valent iron nanoparticles, including those produced using green methods, are efficient remediation agents for a wide range of target contaminants. However, apart from the known advantages of these green nanomaterials, the knowledge of how they act on distinct contaminants is not yet fully understood and requires further investigation. The objectives of this work were to study the degradation of a common antibiotic, amoxicillin, in water and in a sandy soil using green zero-valent iron nanoparticles (gnZVIs) as reductants and as catalysts for the Fenton reaction. It represents the first study of the use of gnZVI, as alternative for the zero-valent iron nanoparticles produced with sodium borohydride, for the degradation of amoxicillin. The results of the performed tests indicate that gnZVIs have the potential to be used in remediation processes. In both chemical tests, the gnZVI was able to degrade up to 100% of amoxicillin in aqueous solutions, using an amoxicillin/gnZVI molar ratio of 1:15 when applied as a reductant, and an amoxicillin/H 2 O 2 /gnZVI molar ratio of 1:13:1 when applied as a catalyst for the Fenton reaction. The soil tests showed that the required molar ratios for near complete degradation were higher in the reduction test (1:150) than in the gnZVI-catalyzed Fenton reaction (1:1290:73). This is possibly due to parallel reactions with the soil matrix and/or limitations of the reagents to reach the entire soil sample. The degradation efficiencies obtained in these tests were 55 and 97% for the reduction and catalyzed Fenton processes, respectively.

Description: The accurate forecasting of typhoon inundation levels is vital for damage mitigation actions during such an event. The objective of this paper is to investigate the characteristics of adaptive network-based fuzzy inference system models for the forecasting of typhoon inundation levels. A novel approach of recursively using the model to achieve higher prediction lead times is proposed. The approach is advantageous in conducting water level forecasts for various prediction lead times using a single model, whereas common non-recursive models are only applicable for the designed prediction leads. In this study, a total of 6 models, with various configurations and types of recursions, are constructed based on the cross-correlations between rainfall and water level records. The performance of each model is evaluated and compared using three indices: coefficient of efficiency, relative time shift, and threshold statistics. The best recursive and non-recursive models are selected and compared with traditional approaches based on autoregressive models with exogenous input. The results show that although the recursive models display somewhat lesser but comparable forecasting capacities compared to the non-recursive models, the former models have achieved forecasts single handedly for all the prediction leads using single models only. On the other hand, although the non-recursive models exhibit better forecasting capacities, this is at the cost of using multiple models, with each designed for a specific prediction lead time. In comparison with other traditional approaches, both the recursive and non-recursive types of models demonstrate superior performance on all the aspects inspected.

Description: The study focused on the feasibility of high NH 4 + –N (400–600 mg/L) and COD load at two different hydraulic retention times (HRTs = 36 and 24 h) in two identical aerobic–anoxic sequencing bioreactors which were constructed in series in a single system using a specifically designed single biomass containing autotrophic nitrifying and heterotrophic denitrifying bacteria. Internal recirculation of synthetic wastewater from one tank to other was not carried out like the conventional aerobic–anoxic processes. Cycles of 15 days under sequences of aerated and non-aerated periods of three hour each were repeated during each continuous flow experiment conducted. Sodium bicarbonate and sodium acetate were selected as the appropriate inorganic and organic carbon sources. The results showed that the HRT may not affect the simultaneous nitrification and denitrification processes. Average nitrification ratio was obtained to be above 20 mg/L NH 4 + –N/h daily. Results of 90 days’ operation also showed high removal efficiencies of ammoniacal nitrogen of about 83% daily. The main advantage of this process includes efficient ammoniacal nitrogen removal without separated aerobic and anoxic tanks, decrease operating costs due to the lesser oxygen concentration requirement in the bioreactors.

Description: The present study highlights the synthesis of CuO–ZnO nanocomposite via facile hydrothermal method at 150 °C and autogenous pressure. The structural and textural features of prepared composite material was characterized by several characterization techniques such as X-ray powder diffraction, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, Scanning electron microscopy, and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy. The optimized prepared nanocomposite was utilized for photocatalytic degradation of aromatic Direct Blue 71 dye (DB71) under natural sunlight conditions. The catalytic activity results by CuO–ZnO nanocomposite were observed to be higher than the reagent-grade zinc oxide under visible light conditions. The response surface methodology protocol (RSM) with central composite design was optimized by different photodegradation operational parameters such as pH, dye concentration, catalyst amount, and reaction time. The optimized RSM results demonstrated that a quadratic polynomial model was found suitable to define the relation between the photocatalytic activity and operational parameters. Moreover, the observed high R 2 value (0.9786) confirms a strong evaluation of experimental data. To achieve maximum DB71 degradation, optimized condition was found at 177.13 min of contact time, 3.93 solution pH, and 24.34 mg/L of dye concentration with 1.85 g/L of catalyst dose The identical optimum conditions resulted maximum 89.58% DB71 degradation.

Description: Cost-effective oil absorbents for the remediation of oil spills have been developed following a facile process involving the modification of polyurethane foam surfaces with mixtures of silicon oxide nanoparticles and polydimethylsiloxane. Polyurethane foams with different pore sizes and connectivity are tested, and it was found that the proposed treatment, applied by dip coating and spray coating, strongly improves the intrinsic foams’ performance in terms of selectivity and oil absorption capacity. The modified foams reach oil absorption capacities up to 60 g/g and simultaneous negligible water uptake. The treatment is stable after multiple absorption cycles, and therefore, the foams can be reused without significant decrease in their performance, being possible, after five cycles of absorption and recovery of oil, to reach overall oil absorption capacities up to 250 g/g.

Description: Lack of reliable knowledge to detect antigen of Salmonella typhi in water samples was our reason to modify ELISA method by alteration ratio of buffer-carbonated solution as new kits. Our study was assigned as six groups based on the different concentrations of S. typhi , 10 4 , 10 6 and 10 8 cells mL −1 of S. typhi , one negative control, two positive controls and different buffer-carbonated solutions at dilution of 1:1000, 1:2000, 1:4000 and 1:8000 as our kits. The ODs of S. typhi were measured with the kits and compared to each other. GLM multivariate statistical analysis also was used for selecting more appropriate ELISA kit to measure more precise ODs of the bacteria concentrations. The closest calculated value to the OD value of 4 (positive control) was dedicated to kit 4 measured for positive control 1 (3.49 ± 0.00), positive control 2 (3.75 ± 0.00) and relatively similar ( p  〉 0.05) to that of positive control 2 (3.27 ± 0.00) measured with kit 1. On the other hand, our results showed that great coefficient variations were measured with kit 1 as well as kits 2 and 3 for all groups except for negative controls. It is concluded that buffer-carbonated solution at dilution of 1:8000, as kit 4 is more capable of detecting S. typhi in water samples using ELISA method.

Description: In this study, quantitative structure–retention relationship methodology was employed for prediction retention time of the 209 polychlorinated biphenyl (PCBs) in human adipose tissue on the DB-1701 column. The molecular descriptor was calculated, and most important ones were selected by stepwise multiple linear regression (SW-MLR) approaches. These descriptors are symbolically represented as BEHp2 , JGI1 , MATS3e , RDF050m which are an independent variable used for generation of linear and nonlinear model by multiple linear regression (MLR) and support vector machine (SVM) methods, respectively. Comparison of statistical parameters of these models indicated that the SVM model performed better than MLR which represents the nonlinear relationship between the structural feature and retention time of PCBs on this chromatographic condition. The relative standard error (SE) of the training and test set for the SVM model was 0.67 and 0.76, and the square correlation coefficients ( R 2 ) were 0.977 and 0.970, respectively. The mean effect analysis indicated that the polarity and structural features of studied PCBs are important factors responsible for chromatographic retention of these chemicals at the same chromatographic condition.

Description: This paper provides a framework for evaluation of innovation risk based on Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) method. In this framework, the common paradigms of innovation risk are considered as inputs and the various types of innovation are as outputs. These risk paradigms were extracted from valid resources of innovation sector, and a comprehensive classification of innovation types, provided by OECD, was used as outputs category. The relationship between these inputs and outputs is assessed by DEA method based on the CCR model. In this survey, the framework was implemented for innovative activities in various industries, and the results lead us to draw the “Innovation Path” that shows the development direction for each understudy cases. The Innovation Path that is derived from the numerical results shows the numerical goal and useful information about innovation management systems. This path can be used by industrial managers, decision makers and strategists to take the best decision and design the practical strategies to manage the innovation risks.

Description: In order to promote the plasma technology for commercial application and improve the energy efficiency of non-thermal plasma, a series of experiments on energy efficiency of plasma reactor were carried out for volatile organic compounds removal. This research adopts a pipe-line reaction device with plasma generated by dielectric barrier discharge technology to examine the effects of different experimental parameters, including medium packing, electric field strength, the pollutant initial concentration, and gas velocity, on the energy efficiency. In the study, four kinds of packed materials were packed into the plasma reactor: a complex catalyst, Ba 0.8 Sr 0.2 Zr 0.1 Ti 0.9 O 3 , MnO 2 /γ-Al 2 O 3 , and γ-Al 2 O 3 . Through optimizing the experimental parameters, the best decomposition efficiency of toluene and the best energy efficiency were achieved. The experimental results show that the energy efficiency has a trend from increasing to decreasing with increasing pollutant gas velocity, and the energy efficiency changes from increasing to decreasing with the increasing of initial concentration of pollutants, and the decomposition efficiency and the energy efficiency have the same order from high to low with different packed materials in the plasma reactors, in turn, packed with complex catalyst, Ba 0.8 Sr 0.2 Zr 0.1 Ti 0.9 O 3 , MnO 2 /γ-Al 2 O 3 , γ-Al 2 O 3 and no padding. The optimized parameters for toluene decomposition are: the gas flow rate of 2 mL/min, the initial concentration range of 1500–2000 mg/m 3 , the field strength intensity of 9.6 kV/cm, and the plasma reactor packed with a complex catalyst, which results in the best energy efficiency of 10 g/kWh. This research provides not only a new way to develop the plasma technology, but also a reference for the commercial application.

Description: Freshwater ecosystems are one of the most endangered and threatened ecosystems worldwide, particularly in developing countries, where population growth, industrialization, urbanization, and changes in land use are increasing. In Mexico, water ecosystems are severely impacted and an easy-to-use tool is needed for monitoring freshwater ecosystems. This study presents the development of a calibration and validation procedure for the Biological Monitoring Working Party Index using physical–chemical and biological data from Neotropical rivers in Mexico (Apatlaco and Chalma-Tembembe). Water quality and macroinvertebrates were monitored in four campaigns including the dry and rainy seasons (2012–2013). Calibration of the index was performed in the following steps: determination of a physicochemical quality index, identification of the abundance class for each family of macroinvertebrates, incorporation of abundances in the corresponding physicochemical quality index interval, and determination of bioindication values for each macroinvertebrate family. With the calibrated values, the index was assessed for each study site and period. The calibrated index was validated by a statistical test. Ranges for water quality categories were defined by three statistical procedures. The range of the Biological Monitoring Working Party Index was tested with study sites from adjacent sub-basins. The Chalma-Tembembe River in agricultural areas comprised the categories “Bad polluted” to “regular and moderately polluted,” whereas the largest portion of the Apatlaco River in urban zones comprised “Bad, very polluted” to “Bad, extremely polluted.” Thus, the calibrated index is a suitable biomonitoring tool, allowing the detection of zones that need urgent management and a recovery plan.

Description: Soil is a complex ecosystem with defined microbial community signatures, modulated by the interaction between biotic and abiotic factors. Amidst biotic factors, land usage have significant impact onto the soil microbial structure and ecosystem functioning. In the current study, metagenomic approach was used to decipher effect of hospital settings on soil microbiome structure and physiological functions. Physico-chemical properties analysis revealed that key elements for maintenance of soil microflora, such as organic carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus and sulfur were relatively diminished within hospital soil, compared to garden soil. Comparative microbial diversity analysis with 97,315 SSU rRNA gene sequences generated from both the soil samples highlight relatively low microbial diversity, with an enrichment for Acidobacteria and Bacteroidetes and decreased Proteobacteria / Acidobacteria ratio. Comparative shotgun metagenome sequence analysis further revealed a shift in the physiological role of soil microbiomes with change in soil usage. Genes for carbohydrate, sulfur, potassium and nitrogen metabolism were significantly ( q value 〈0.05) higher in the garden soil; while the genes for phage, plasmid DNA, transposon and aromatic compound metabolism were significantly enriched within hospital soil. Thus, the current study highlights a correlation between soil biochemistry and microbial ecology based on land usage.

Description: For emerging countries such as Brazil, improved performance in the agricultural sector can be achieved by studies on the factors that have affected the performance and on economic perspectives relative to their internal structure and its relation with the external market. The present work aims to contribute with sustained economic expansion by studying strategies for expanding the energy supply in agribusiness. The characterization of specific energy consumption and energy indicators was performed considering a process of natural evolution, using logistic curves that describe the growth or evolution process. The specific energy consumption in agricultural activities was determined from data on the consumption of energy by machinery and equipments used in agricultural activities, as well as by establishing specific consumption indicators (ratio of energy consumed per unit produced) for each stage of production and by end-use. Nine crops and three herds were evaluated. In conclusions, the technology levels reached by the Brazilian agricultural sector have reflected on increased productivity and competitiveness in the international market with improvement in machines and equipments efficiency and operational capacity. In sugarcane culture, for example, the productivity increased 10% from 2009 to 2015. It has also been noticed a trend to reduce the use of low-power tractors and to increase the use of medium- to high-power tractors, which has also favored the productivity increase. The incorporation of new technologies tends to be more intense in the crops and herds that have an already established market.

Description: In this work, accumulation of cosmogenic radionuclide 7 Be in seven species of lichens was determined using HPGe detectors in autumn season. Ramsar city which is located in the north of Iran as one of the high-level natural radiation areas in the world was considered. Lichen species represented good potential in accumulation of 7 Be radionuclide. The foliose species of Xanthoria parietina with the highest activity concentration value of 112.8 ± 1.8 Bq kg −1 was introduced as bioindicator for accumulation of 7 Be radionuclide. Cladonia rangiformis species has got minimum concentration of 64.5 ± 0.8 Bq kg −1 . Also from thallus morphology viewpoint, results showed that 7 Be accumulation in foliose species is higher than in fruticose and crustose lichens species. Also there was relatively large positive correlation between 7 Be and 226 Ra activity concentrations in lichens species.

Description: In this study, we are reporting bacterial diversity in crude oil-contaminated soil of Assam, India. Integration of physiological community profiling, culture-dependent and culture-independent (metagenome) approaches, was employed to obtain a complete picture of the total bacterial diversity. Samples collected from 10 sites contaminated with crude oil ranging from 0.22 to 89.36% were analysed, and altogether 160 culturable bacteria were isolated (117 Gram-positive and 43 Gram-negative bacteria). Molecular identification showed the predominance of genera Lysinibacillus, Alcaligenes , Bacillus , Clostridium, Enterobacter and Pseudomonas . Conversely, denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) profiles of 16S rDNA phylotypes showed the predominance of Sphingomonas , Ralstonia , Sphingobium , Massilia , Acinetobacter and Pseudomonas. Both culture-dependent and culture-independent approaches resulted in 11 genera of which Bacillus and Pseudomonas were the key inhabitants creating most favourable bacterial milieu in the presence of crude oil contaminants. Metabolic fingerprints data depicted in PCA plot demonstrated that sites CTF-D-1 and Core-10 were most diverged. It was further confirmed that variations of bacterial species dominance in different sites were due to origin of hydrocarbon contamination. We here claim that the present findings is a first-hand report on combined physiological community profiling, culture-based and culture-independent approaches in assessing total bacterial diversity in crude oil-contaminated soil of Assam.

Description: Diesel oil is one of the derivatives of crude oil which resistance to biodegradation due to its complex structure and low solubility in water. A novel concept of enhancement of diesel degradation using floating water droplet is proposed and being investigated to address some key challenges encountered in diesel oil spillages in the aqueous area and wetlands. This study aims to increase the floatability of a floating water droplet on oil. A droplet containing a mixed consortium of 60 different hydrocarbon degrading bacteria and sodium dodecyl sulfate as a surfactant was deposited on the diesel oil surface. Contact angle and contact radius were monitored to observe the effect of bacterial activities on the droplet. The behavior of this droplet on diesel oil was different to a previous study with paraffin oil. In particular, the floatability, bacterial growth and biofilm formation demonstrate significant deviation due to the diesel interactions with biological processes. Nevertheless, the results show this method increase microbial activities within the droplet. The result verifies the applicability of the floating water droplet as an environmentally friendly method for diesel oil spillages.

Description: Dimethyl phthalate (DMP) is ubiquitous in aquatic environments due to extensively used as plasticizer, which has received increasing attention in recent years. In this study, the catalytic ozonation of dimethyl phthalate was performed using Ce-substituted goethite as a novel catalyst, which was prepared by isomorphous substitution method. The specific surface area, pHpzc and surface hydroxyl density of the catalyst were determined. The catalyst was characterized using X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscope and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. The removal efficiency of DMP was almost 100% after 30 min, and about 40% DMP was mineralized after 60 min, which was nearly four times higher than single ozonation. During catalytic ozonation process, anions (PO 4 3− , SO 4 2− , Cl − ) affected DMP degradation, indicating that surface hydroxyl groups on the surface of catalyst were main active sites. The electron transfer process by redox reaction between Ce 3+ /Ce 4+ , Fe 2+ /Fe 3+ was proposed, and their interaction could also promote the formation of hydroxyl radicals. Ce-substituted goethite was an efficient catalyst for degradation of DMP by catalytic ozonation.

Description: A reliable prediction of dispersion coefficient can provide valuable information for environmental scientists and river engineers as well. The main objective of this study is to apply intelligence techniques for predicting longitudinal dispersion coefficient in rivers. In this regard, artificial neural network (ANN) models were developed. Four different metaheuristic algorithms including genetic algorithm (GA), imperialist competitive algorithm (ICA), bee algorithm (BA) and cuckoo search (CS) algorithm were employed to train the ANN models. The results obtained through the optimization algorithms were compared with the Levenberg–Marquardt (LM) algorithm (conventional algorithm for training ANN). Overall, a relatively high correlation between measured and predicted values of dispersion coefficient was observed when the ANN models trained with the optimization algorithms. This study demonstrates that the metaheuristic algorithms can be successfully applied to make an improvement on the performance of the conventional ANN models. Also, the CS, ICA and BA algorithms remarkably outperform the GA and LM algorithms to train the ANN model. The results show superiority of the performance of the proposed model over the previous equations in terms of DR, R 2 and RMSE.

Description: Reverse dispersion modelling was employed to quantify sulphur dioxide (SO 2 ) and nitrogen dioxide (NO 2 ) emissions from brick firing clamp kilns and spontaneous combustion from a coal discard dump. Reverse dispersion modelling technique integrates ambient monitoring and dispersion simulation to calculate actual emission rates from an assumed rate of 1 g per second (g/s). Emission rates and emission factors were successfully quantified for SO 2 , but not for NO 2 , due to the influence of external sources and the complexity regarding the varying proportion of nitrogen oxides released from the kiln. Quantified emission factor for clamp kiln firing ranged from 1.91–3.24 g of SO 2 per brick fired and 0.67–1.14 g of SO 2 per kilogram of bricks fired. The variation in SO 2 emission factors was linked to high variability in energy input. The source configuration input to the dispersion model, assumed to represent the kiln, was changed from a volume source to a more effective “bi-point” source situated at the top of the kiln, with buoyancy calculated from the carbon combustion rate. In addition, SO 2 emission rate for spontaneous combustion from the discard dump was quantified as 0.35 g/s. 274 tons of discard material was estimated to burn annually, assuming that the emission rate is consistent over a year. Consequently, the reverse dispersion modelling and the elevated “bi-point” source technique may be considered a novel approach for quantifying emissions from combustion of materials or mixture of materials where knowledge of source parameters is limited.

Description: The aim of this study was to characterize both the viable airborne bacteria and fungi collected in different types of wastewater treatment plants in Poland. Bacterial and fungal aerosols in five different wastewater treatment plants in Poland were studied, including the pioneering antibiotic resistance testing of airborne bacteria. Concentration level was measured using the six-stage Andersen impactor. After incubation, bioaerosol particles captured on nutrient media on Petri dishes were quantitatively evaluated and qualitatively identified. It was found that the concentration levels of both airborne bacteria and fungi ranged from 10² to 10³ colony-forming units/m³, in all stages of the wastewater treatment plants. The patterns of size distributions of airborne bacteria and fungi were very similar, showing dominant peaks typically in the size range between 3.3 and 4.7 μm. The majority fraction of small bacterial and fungal particles (less than 4.7 μm) in the studied areas indicates that the bioaerosol is relatively fresh, and mostly of local origin. The Gram-positive cocci and nonsporing Gram-positive rods were the dominating forms in the studied wastewater treatment plants environment. The existing differences in the concentration levels between sampling sites enabled identification of the main bioaerosol sources. The highest concentration of bacterial aerosol appeared in sections, where activated sludge post-processing and mechanical purifying are conducted. The most frequently occurring species in the sampled bacterial aerosol were Gram-positive cocci and nonsporing Gram-positive rods. Multi-antibiotic resistance testing showed that among the isolated airborne bacteria, the most antibiotic-resistant features were present among Bacillus species (especially Bacillus mycoides ).

Description: Chitosan, carrageenan and alginate are among the most abundant biopolymers in nature. They were prepared in uniform beads shape with a diameter of 2 mm ± 10%, using the encapsulator for removal of calcium, magnesium and iron cations from hard water. Solutions of 100–500 mg/L were prepared from each cation, and the detection of cations was carried out using atomic absorption spectrometer. Carrageenan and chitosan were able to chelate the three cations without further modification. However, alginate beads succeeded to chelate iron and magnesium and failed to chelate any calcium ions; in contrast, it increased the initial calcium concentration! That could be due to the pre-cross-linking of alginate beads using calcium chloride solution, which may be leaked back to the solution. However, grafting the alginate beads with polyethyleneimine and bromoacetic acid rectified this problem and the new functional group, –COOH, has been proved using the FT-IR. Optimization of the results in terms of beads weight (0.25–3.0 g) and cations concentrations (100–500 mg/L) has shown that most biopolymeric beads can chelate 85–100% of the cations in concentrations up to 500 mg/L. According to our finding, we came up with the recommendation to use chitosan for chelation of calcium and iron as it showed 100% chelation efficiency of both cations, whereas carrageenan is highly recommended for chelation of iron and magnesium, as it showed 100 and 98% chelation efficiency, respectively. Further work can be done on the reusability of the beads and scale up for the industrial use.

Description: Biological treatment of industrial wastewater containing heavy metal and organic pollutant has attracted extensive attention. In this study, Cr(VI) reduction coupled with phenol degradation was investigated by the sulfate-reducing bacteria (SRB) sludge with addition of zero-valent iron (ZVI). The results showed that the SRB wet sludge (SWS) had a good bioactivity in the reduction of Cr(VI) only when the initial concentration of Cr(VI) was below 60 mg L −1 . The addition of ZVI significantly enhanced the bioactivity and reusability of SWS, and the reduction percentage of Cr(VI) achieved 98% after SWS was successively used for seven cycles. SWS coupled with ZVI showed a high activity in phenol degradation, with more than 94% phenol being degraded in each cycle. However, in the simultaneous removal of Cr(VI) and phenol, phenol degradation was inhibited due to the toxicity of Cr(VI) to phenol degrading microbes in SWS. On the other hand, reduction of sulfate and Cr(VI) was not affected by the presence of phenol, with more than 95% of sulfate and Cr(VI) being removed at the end of the 5th cycle. This study enriches our understanding on the applications of the SRB sludge in the removal of organic and inorganic contaminants in wastewater.

Description: The leaching rate of 134 Cs in cement has been studied. The solidification matrix by a standard Portland cement mixed with the spent ion-exchange resins was previously developed. The leaching rates from cement matrices were measured in function of pH, the immersion and curing times, the resin amounts, and 134 Cs concentration. In all cases, the leaching rate was deduced from 134 Cs cumulative activity measured by gamma spectrometry. The study showed that only 11.8% of total 134 Cs has been leached. This fraction concentrated to the solid surface by silanols has been moved during 34 days through two mechanisms. The Langmuir and Freundlich isotherms attributed these two mechanisms at successive attacks, by water and multilayer and monolayer site formed at the interface package/water. The presence of the spent ion-exchange resins in the matrix, as waste, improves and increases 134 Cs retention power in the cemented package. In fact, the fraction of 134 Cs mobilized in the absence of resins (3.18 Bq/Kg) becomes negligible in the presence of 12% of resins.

Description: The pollution of soil with heavy metals has direct or indirect adverse effect on human health. The present work was conducted to identify all the expected sources and sinks for heavy metals by applying mass balance model to identify the retention rate of metals by soils in Yaakob village, south Sohag Governorate, Egypt. The studied inputs (sources) include P-fertilizers, irrigation water and dustfall, while the main outputs (sinks) are drainage water and harvested plants. The measurements indicate that soil, clover, dustfall and P-fertilizers contain considerable concentration of Cd, Cr, Co, Cu and Pb. The mass balance measurements indicate that the accumulation rate of Cd, Cr and Co in soil was 5.4, 54.6 and 16.3 g ha −1  year −1 , respectively. However, depletion trend of Pb and Cu was about 1.4 and 5.2 g ha −1  year −1 , respectively. The main source of Cd, Pb, Cr and Co in the study area is P-fertilizers with input flux 14.9, 89.9, 198.6 and 18.5 g ha −1  year −1 , while Cu source was dustfall with 19.33 g ha −1  year −1 . The index of geoaccumulation calculations indicates different degrees of contamination with Cd, Cr, Co and Cu. On the other hand, the main sink for the studied heavy metals was the Egyptian clover ( Trifolium alexandrinum ) which can be considered a good bioaccumulator of heavy metals.

Description: In the present paper, the analysis of concentration and flow fields around a model building was performed using two different approaches in turbulence modeling. In the first approach, the non-linear model of Ehrhard and Moussiopoulos was employed as one of the best cubic non-linear eddy viscosity models, and large eddy simulation was utilized in the second approach. The obtained results suggest that although the non-linear model has the ability to predict the anisotropic normal components of Reynolds stress tensor, due to time-averaged nature of its governing equations, it is incapable of estimating the correct values of Reynolds stress components and turbulent characteristics in the wake region of the model building. So the predicted turbulence kinetic energy values by the non-linear model are 45% smaller than those of large eddy simulation approach in the wake region behind the model building. Also different predictions of the wake region structure by the non-linear model and large eddy simulation approach revealed that elongation of iso-surface for \(\left\langle K \right\rangle\)  = 1.5 in non-linear model is 56% more than that of large eddy simulation approach. The large eddy simulation approach shows much consistent behavior to the physics governing the flow compared to the non-linear model. Also good agreement observed between the results obtained through this approach and the experimental data. However, the disadvantage of large eddy simulation approach is the high computational costs.

Description: Five trace metals, viz. copper (Cu), chromium (Cr), iron (Fe), mercury (Hg) and zinc (Zn), in three organs (muscle, gills and liver) of four selected fish species ( Mugil cephalus, Eleutheronema tetradactylum, Etroplus suratensis and Daysciaena albida ) from Chilika lagoon were studied monthly to assess the concentration level and human health risk via consumption. The average and range of metal concentrations (μg g −1 ) in flesh of the fish species were found to be: Cu (4.15, 3.47–5.03), Cr (0.25, 0.04–0.63), Fe (19.72, 14.51–27.30), Hg (0.07, 0.05–0.08) and Zn (8.09, 4.41–11.36). The metal concentrations measured in the edible muscles of all fish species were found lower as compared to the contents in liver and gill. Analysis of variance revealed a significant difference in trace metal accumulation among the organs ( p  〈 0.001), but the difference among the seasons and fish species was insignificant ( p  〉 0.05), with the exception of Zn accumulation ( p  〈 0.05). The estimated daily intake (EDI) of the trace metals through the consumption of fish as a dietary component varied widely from 0.48 to 21.33% with respect to the corresponding permissible tolerable daily intake (PTDI). The target hazard quotients (THQs) calculated considering these EDIs for individual metals indicated that the Cr and Cu metals dominantly contributed (avg. THQ = 0.198) to represent the hazard index (HI) than other metals (avg. THQ = 0.029). The average HI determined for all the species was 〈1 (0.484, ranged 0.255–0.605), indicating that these fish species of Chilika are safe for human consumption.

Description: A novel magnetic composite coagulant, prepared from nano-Fe 3 O 4 and poly-aluminum chloride, was introduced to pre-treat mature landfill leachate. The coagulation performance of the coagulant as well as its microstructural morphology was discussed. Coagulation experimental results revealed that the coagulation performance of the landfill leachate using the new coagulant was better than that using poly-aluminum chloride alone, with COD and color removals above 60 and 68%, respectively. Based on the analysis of three-dimensional excitation–emission matrix spectrum, the fluorescence signals of treated leachate are totally reduced by the magnetic composite coagulant. The components of dissolved organic matters in the wastewater are removed in different degrees. Fourier transform infrared spectra analysis shows that the magnetic composite coagulant, which is a multi-core polymer with hydroxyl ligands and nano-Fe 3 O 4 , has a complex valence and crystal structure. Besides, X-ray diffraction pattern analysis indicates that the chemical composition of the magnetic composite coagulant is not changed significantly, which has comprehensively combined the chemical characteristics of both nano-Fe 3 O 4 and poly-aluminum chloride, whereas the specific surface area of the novel magnetic composite coagulant effectively increased by nano-Fe 3 O 4 particles under the analysis of scanning electron microscope spectral. The specific surface area analysis indicates that the magnetic composite coagulant is interconnected by narrow cracks and holes and has a high specific surface area and developed pore structure, which is also similar to the typical porous-type materials. Therefore, the nano-Fe 3 O 4 compounded with poly-aluminum chloride leads to a larger specific surface, smaller average pore diameter, and more pore volume of the novel coagulant.

Description: Urease which catalyzes biodegradation of urea to ammonia and carbon dioxide has attracted a great deal of attention as a catalyst in food industry, agriculture and artificial kidneys. Immobilization is a unique approach for enhancement of enzyme stability before enzyme industrialization. In the present work, crude sword bean urease was immobilized in the form of cross-linked enzyme aggregate prior to entrapment in polyacrylamide gel or chitosan beads. No significant change was observed in the kinetic constant value ( k m ) of urease upon formation of cross-linked enzyme aggregate. Entrapment of urease cross-linked aggregates in chitosan beads resulted in complete loss of activity while polyacrylamide-embedded cross-linked urease aggregates were enzymatically active. The optimum temperature for urease was 60 °C (soluble and cross-linked aggregate form) and 70 °C (polyacrylamide-embedded cross-linked aggregate). The optimal pH for urease was 7.0 (soluble and cross-linked aggregate form) and 5.0 (polyacrylamide-embedded cross-linked aggregate). In the other words, immobilization in the form of cross-linked aggregate and entrapment in polyacrylamide matrix could be resulted in the stabilization of urease over a wider pH range. Urease cross-linked aggregate showed improved stability at 60 °C, and its half-life increased about two times. Operational stability of cross-linked urease aggregate was also noticeably improved upon entrapment in polyacrylamide gel. In conclusion, entrapment of carrier-free cross-linked urease aggregate in a polyacrylamide matrix could result in a great improvement in both the storage and operational stabilities of urease.

Description: Magnetic photo-Fenton catalysts based on spinel CuFe 2 O 4 were successfully prepared by the starch-assisted sol–gel method. Various synthetic conditions such as annealing temperatures (700, 800 and 900 °C) and molar ratios of Cu 2+ /Fe 3+ /C 6 H 10 O 5 in the precursor solution (from 1:2:2 to 1:2:4) were, respectively, used in order to study the influences of annealing temperatures and precursor starch contents on the magnetic and catalytic properties of CuFe 2 O 4 powders. The photo-Fenton catalytic activity was evaluated via the degradation of methylene blue under ultraviolet and visible irradiation with H 2 C 2 O 4 as a new oxidizing agent. According to the results, when the annealing temperature increased to 800 °C, the spinel CuFe 2 O 4 phase amount was increased, which strongly enhances the photo-Fenton catalytic performance. However, above 800 °C, the catalytic activity was reduced, due to the increase in particle size. The starch content also affected the surface Cu 2+ content and the particle size of catalysts. The catalyst prepared at 800 °C with the molar Cu 2+ /Fe 3+ /C 6 H 10 O 5 ratio of 1:2:3 presented the best photo-Fenton performance, owing to its highest surface Cu 2+ content. This catalyst also exhibits ferromagnetic properties (saturation magnetization of 25.836 emu/g and coercivity of 1010.23 Oe), which allows them to be easily separated from the solution by a magnet.

Description: Building envelope plays an important role in energy efficiency of the buildings as it is the only permanent source of energy efficiency. A well-designed building envelope reduces the demand of HVAC and lighting load. When insulation is provided in the building envelope, it further enhances the energy efficiency. Therefore, it is important to create thermal resistant building envelope considering both the energy consumption and the associated costs. Thermal insulation has a considerable positive effect on reducing the heating and cooling energy demand. It is seen from the tests conducted by Nasrollahi and Nooraei ( 2013 ) for design of energy efficient and cost-effective office buildings that initial increase in insulation reduces the heating/cooling load but beyond a certain limit, there is no substantial effect of reduction in heating/cooling load with increase in insulation indicating that there is an optimum value beyond which insulation has no substantial effect on reduction in heating/cooling load. Therefore, the paper attempts to find out this optimum level of insulation so that the building envelope is cost-effective and energy efficient. Three case studies of energy efficient LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design)/GRIHA (Green Rating for Integrated Habitat Assessment) certified buildings have been considered to determine the optimum level of insulation. In the analysis, comparison has been made between U -values of various components of the building envelopes of three case studies with the U -values prescribed by Energy Conservation Building Code (ECBC)-2007 for various components of the building envelopes based on daytime or 24-h usage, and location of the buildings in composite/warm and humid climate zones. Thereafter, results obtained from the analysis have been compared with the optimum U -values derived from the tests conducted by Nasrollahi and Nooraei ( 2013 ) to arrive at the optimum level of insulation. The optimum level of insulation has been found to be 30% above U -values prescribed by Energy Conservation Building Code.

Description: In recent years, traces of acetaminophen, a widely used analgesic and anti-inflammatory and known to be an over-the-counter drug, have been detected unaltered in effluents of conventional wastewater treatment facilities. About 58–68% released through excretion during patient’s therapeutic treatment, and only about 80–86% were removed by the wastewater treatment facility. This study investigated the improved performance of photocatalysis in degrading or removing acetaminophen. The visible light active potassium peroxodisulfate-doped titanium dioxide photocatalysts synthesized via sol–gel method was used to eliminate acetaminophen from aqueous solutions through photocatalytic oxidation. The effects of the amount of dopant, calcination temperature and calcination time on the properties and visible light photocatalytic activity of potassium peroxodisulfate-doped titanium dioxide were also investigated. Increasing the amount of the dopant and calcination temperature up to a certain extent increases removal efficiency while further decreased the removal rate. Potassium peroxodisulfate-doped titanium dioxide photocatalysts were characterized by X-ray diffraction, ultraviolet–visible light diffuse reflectance spectroscopy, Brunauer–Emmett–Teller method and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. Potassium peroxodisulfate-doped titanium dioxide with 0.5% w dopant and calcined at 300 °C for 3 h degrades about 100% acetaminophen in aqueous solution within 540 min. The reaction of acetaminophen with the photocatalyst has an apparent rate constant of 8.39 × 10 −3 min −1 .

Description: Seaweeds or marine macroalgae are rich in diverse compounds like lipids, proteins, carbohydrates, phytohormones, amino acids, osmoprotectants, antimicrobial compounds and minerals. Their potential for agricultural applications is used since antiquity, but recent demands of organic farming and organic food stimulated much the application of organic treatments like seaweed extracts in agriculture. The benefits of seaweeds application in agricultural field are numerous and diverse such as stimulation of seed germination, enhancement of health and growth of plants namely shoot and root elongation, improved water and nutrient uptake, frost and saline resistance, biocontrol and resistance toward phytopathogenic organisms, remediation of pollutants of contaminated soil and fertilization. In this review, scientific progress in this field was collected and critically assessed to lay grounds for further investigations and applications.

Description: The properties of activated sludge are very important in a membrane bioreactor (MBR) in terms of membrane fouling. The most important parameters affecting the membrane fouling can be listed as mixed liquor suspended solid (MLSS) concentration, soluble microbial products (SMPs), extracellular polymeric substances (EPSs), floc size, aeration and viscosity of both supernatant and activated sludge. The COD/TKN ratio also affects the physical properties of sludge in MBR system. This study aimed to investigate the effect of chemical oxygen demand-to-total Kjeldahl nitrogen (COD/TKN) ratio of feed wastewater treated in an MBR on biological components of activated sludge. The activated sludge characteristics were determined by quantitative analyses such as MLSS, EPS, SMP, floc size distribution, zeta potential, relative hydrophobicity and capillary suction time in a submerged MBR treating simulated wastewater having different COD/TKN ratios (16, 56 and 107). The COD and TKN removal efficiencies were found to be almost equal in the sMBRs having different COD/TKN ratios. However, it was seen that the EPS content and SMP concentration in the supernatant increased with increasing COD/TKN ratio. The results indicated that the COD/TKN ratio of feed should be considered as an effective parameter on activated sludge properties in sMBR systems.

Description: In this report, the recovery of Cr(VI) from chrome plating water by using a novel calix[4]arene-functionalized graphene quantum dots (GQDs) involved polymer inclusion membrane was investigated. The polymeric membrane supported by GQDs was characterized by using Fourier transform infrared (FTIR), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and atomic force microscopy (AFM). The SEM and AFM results clearly show that there are much larger visible pores on the membrane surface after modification of polymer inclusion membrane with GQDs and the micropores in the membrane surface were vanished and performed with GQDs after modification of membrane. The transport efficiency of chromium was found to be 97.23% through the modified membrane from 0.1 M HCl as donor phase to pH 5 as an acceptor phase. The system is available for long-term usage. The highly selective and mechanical strength of membrane is developed by adding GQDs. Modified membrane exhibits significant stability and selectivity, and the system is used for the real samples. Graphical Abstract

Description: A double-chambered biocathode microbial fuel cell with carbon felt employed as electrodes was developed for wastewater treatment and bioelectricity generation simultaneously. The system was operated in fed-batch mode for over eight batches. The effect of circuit connections on organic and nitrate reduction was investigated. The maximum power density recorded was 21.97 mW/m 2 at current density of 88.57 mA/m 2 . The Coulombic efficiency and internal resistance of the system were 5% and 100 Ω. Up to 89.9 ± 5.9% of chemical oxygen demand reduction efficiency achieved with an influent of 1123 ± 28 mg/L. There was no significant difference in the chemical oxygen demand reduction when system operated in either open or closed circuit. This study clearly showed that higher nitrate reduction efficiency obtained in closed circuit (74.7 ± 7.0%) due to bio-electrochemical denitrification compared to only 41.7% in the open circuit. The result also successfully demonstrated nitrate as terminal electron acceptor for the cathodic nitrate reduction.

Description: Eastern Black Sea Region of Turkey is a sub-ecoregion of the Caucasus Ecoregion, and its Plecoptera fauna is similar to fauna of Caucasus with unique endemic species of the region. The Caucasus Ecoregion is one of the “WWF Global 200 Ecoregions,” and it is also included in the list of top 25 hotspots in the World. Running water ecosystems of Eastern Black Sea sub-ecoregion are the most sensitive to land use change and global climate change. High-altitude aquatic ecosystems are more strongly threatened by global climate change in the region. Plecoptera constitute the most important part of the biodiversity of running waters in the region. Among the benthic macroinvertebrate taxa, Plecoptera is the best indicator of ecological conditions of running waters. The influence of environmental variables on the distribution of twenty Plecoptera species in running water ecosystems (headwaters, crenon, epirhithron, metarhithron) was assessed using canonical correspondence analysis. Sampling was carried out in 2009 and 2011. Eleven end groups were generated from the TWINSPAN analysis. Isoperla rhododendri , Isoperla grammatica , Protonemura bifida , Protonemura eumontana and Perla caucasica were closely related to pH, dissolved oxygen and riparian vegetation. Brachyptera transcaucasica transcaucasica , Nemoura martynovia , Nemoura taurica and Protonemura eumontana were related to Mg and Cu. The results show that the Plecoptera assemblage composition was affected by DO, pH, EC, temperature, nitrite, Ca, Mg, Fe, Cu, Zn, Al, riparian vegetation, altitude and stream width.

Description: Fluoride ion (F − ) removal technologies from water (defluoridation) suffer from cost and/or efficiency drawbacks. The hugely available low-cost calcined gypsum (plaster of paris) represents a material of choice, especially in the developing countries. Partially soluble calcined gypsum introduces Ca 2+ and SO 4 2− into the water. In this work, the influence of tartaric acid, paracetamol, polyvinyl alcohol and Zn/Al layered double hydroxide additives (either retarders or accelerators) on defluoridation of water by calcined gypsum was studied. These additives act as retarders to the calcined gypsum setting and, hence, delay or disturb the crystallization of gypsum, offering the time for the crystallization of fluoro-compounds containing calcium, fluoride, phosphate and silicate. The more retarded the setting time, the more the Ca 2+ is introduced in the solution, and hence, the more efficient the defluoridation process. The values of Δ G 0 are negative for all additives, indicating the spontaneity of the fluoride removal process. The results of X-ray diffraction, Fourier transform infrared and scanning electron microscopy of the produced gypsum supported this interpretation.

Description: Novel bionanocomposites, S. cerevisiae –AgNPs, were synthesized by in situ formation of AgNPs on S. cerevisiae surface using fulvic acids as reductants under simulated sunlight. S. cerevisiae –AgNPs were characterized using UV–Vis spectroscopy, scanning electron microscope, transmission electron microscope and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. These analyses showed that AgNPs were distributed on the surface of S. cerevisiae . The application of S. cerevisiae –AgNPs in bacteria killing and heavy metal removal was studied. S. cerevisiae –AgNPs effectively inhibited the growth of E. coli with increasing concentrations of S. cerevisiae –AgNPs. E. coli was killed completely at high concentration S. cerevisiae –AgNPs (e.g., 100 or 200 µg mL −1 ). S. cerevisiae –AgNPs as excellent heavy metal absorbents also have been studied. Using Cd 2+ as model heavy metal, batch experiments confirmed that the adsorption behavior fitted the Langmuir adsorption isotherms and the Cd 2+ adsorption capacity of S. cerevisiae –AgNPs was 15.01 mg g −1 . According to adsorption data, the kinetics of Cd 2+ uptake by S. cerevisiae –AgNPs followed pseudo second-order kinetic model. Moreover, S. cerevisiae –AgNPs possessed ability of different heavy metals’ removal (e.g., Cr 5+ , As 5+ , Pb 2+ , Cu 2+ , Mn 2+ , Zn 2+ , Hg 2+ , Ni 2+ ). The simulated contaminated water containing E. coli , Cd 2+ and Pb 2+ was treated using S. cerevisiae –AgNPs. The results indicated that the bionanocomposites can be used to develop antibacterial agents and bioremediation agents for water treatment.

Description: Nowadays, two fundamental pillars of human existence are environmental protection and sustainable development. Governments and international organizations play an important role in this process. Without serious regional interactions and international cooperation, sustainability in development and environmental protection will not happen. Except for international interactions and global peace, sustainable development and development sustainability are not on their accurate paths. An effective method for natural resources and ecosystems conservation is environmental diplomacy. Therefore, environmental discussions are extremely important reasons for international convergence. Through convergence attitude, the international community can reach the global environmental conservation strategies. In this study, it is attempted to determine the international environmental law evolution and the governments’ roles in environmental challenges underlying the international convergence and legal fundamentals. It is concluded that, environmental threats and hazards resulted from illogical human act can be solved by international convergence, environmental conservation and global peace.

Description: The excessive loss of soil nitrogen through drainage losses causes different environmental problems. The depth and spacing drain of drains play an important role in the quality and quantity of discharged drainage into the environment. In this paper, a simple but comprehensive model using system dynamic approach for water cycle and nitrogen dynamics was used to simulate the effect of drain depth and spacing on nitrate and ammonium losses in a sugarcane agro-industrial company. Twenty-four scenarios were modeled including the combination of four different drain depths and six drain spacing to compare the effect of drain depth and spacing on the nitrogen uptake by plant, denitrification, net mineralization, the amount of ammonium losses through runoff, nitrate and ammonium losses through drainage water, the sum of excessive water, the stress day index and the relative yield. The results indicated that optimal drainage system density is obtained in the depth of 1.1 m and spacing of 80 m, in a way that the total drainage losses would be reduced up to an acceptable level. The optimum designing of the drainage systems according to environmental criteria can control nitrogen pollution load at farm level and can therefore have appropriate results both in terms of economic and environmental considerations.

Description: A large portion of water is consumed during various textile operations thereby discharging wastewaters with pollutants of huge environmental concern. The treatment of such wastewaters has promising impact in the field of environmental engineering. In this work, Fenton oxidation treatment was engaged to treat simulated textile wastewater. Box–Behnken design and response surface methodology were employed to optimize the efficiency of Fenton process. Iron dose, peroxide dose and pH were considered as input variables while the responses were taken as chemical oxygen demand and color removal. A total of 17 experiments were conducted and analyzed using second-order quadratic model. The quadratic models generated for chemical oxygen demand and color removal efficiencies were validated using analysis of variances, and it was found that the experimental data fitted the second-order model quite effectively. Analysis of variances demonstrated high values of coefficient of determination ( R 2 ) for chemical oxygen demand and color removal efficiencies with values of 0.9904 and 0.9963 showing high conformation of predicted values to the experimental ones. Perturbation plots suggested that the iron dosage produced the maximum effect on both chemical oxygen demand and color removal efficiencies. The optimum parameters were determined as Fe 2+ dose—550 mg/L, H 2 O 2 dose—5538 mg/L, pH—3.3 with corresponding chemical oxygen demand and color removal efficiencies of 73.86 and 81.35%. Fenton process was found efficient in treatment of simulated textile wastewater, and optimization using response surface methodology was found satisfactory as well as relevant. From the present study, it can also be concluded that if this method is used as pretreatment integrated with biological treatment, it can lead to eco-friendly solution for treatment of textile wastewaters.

Description: The objective of this study is to integrate geographic information system and bivariate frequency ratio method for the mapping of flowing well zones in the west and southwest parts of the Euphrates river basin of Iraq. Ten groundwater conditioning factors are identified as controlling factors of groundwater movement based on data availability, literature review, and expert’s opinions. The spatial association between flowing well locations and groundwater controlling factors is investigated by means of a probabilistic frequency ratio approach. Seventy percent or 148 wells from an inventory of 211 flowing wells in the study area are randomly selected for training, and the remaining 30 or 63% wells are used for validation of the probabilistic frequency ratio model. The estimated probabilistic ratio values are overlaid and summed to produce the groundwater potential index map. The results reveal that groundwater potential in 128,547 km 2 or 84% of the total area is very low to low. The moderate potential zone covers an area of about 11,210 km 2 or 7%, while the high and very high potential zones are found in an area of 12,982 km 2 or 9% of the study area. Validation of obtaining results by means of a receiver operating characteristic technique reveals that the predictive accuracy of 94% indicating the excellent performance of the proposed approach for spatial zoning of groundwater flowing well boundary at Iraqi desert.

Description: Todos os Santos (all Saints) Bay area on Brazil’s east coast is known for one of the most significant cases of lead contamination in the country owing to the past activities of a Pb-smelter plant. This work was carried out to assess the concentration and sources of Pb based on Pb isotopes and enrichment factor of soil profiles surrounding Todos os Santos Bay in order to understand the expansion of contamination and to help the establishment of Pb regulatory standards for the region. Forty-four samples were collected from soil genetic horizons of six pedons that represent the range of dominant soil properties and geologic materials in the region. Concentrations of Pb and the isotopes 204 Pb, 206 Pb, 207 Pb, and 208 Pb were determined on an inductively coupled plasma (quadrupole) mass spectrometry. The soil enrichment factor was calculated using Al and Fe as conservative index elements. Average Pb concentration (15.87 mg kg −1 ) in uppermost horizons (from all six pedons) is slightly higher than soil background concentrations commonly reported in Brazil. Samples feature a wide range of Pb isotope ratios, ranging from 36.71 to 47.38 for 208 Pb/ 204 Pb, 15.00 to 15.65 for 207 Pb/ 204 Pb, 16.86 to 20.59 for 206 Pb/ 204 Pb, and 1.10 to 1.31 for 206 Pb/ 207 Pb. For the enrichment factor calculations, only Fe demonstrated a good agreement with Pb isotopic ratios. Both Pb isotopic composition and enrichment factor were useful tools to distinguishing natural and anthropogenic influence on the Pb soil concentrations.

Description: Crude oil and its derivatives because of different events and accidents may cause pollution to the environment. A biological treatment is a novel technique that uses microorganisms to remove or neutralize pollutants from a contaminated site. Oil-contaminated soils were sampled, after isolating of soil bacteria, using quantitative and qualitative screening, biosurfactant-producing bacteria were identified and environmental factors on the growth of bacteria and biosurfactant were investigated. In this study, the Bacillus subtilis was identified as the best biosurfactant-producing strain which has the ability to grow in environments with high salinity and temperature and pH 〉 5. The produced biosurfactant from B. subtilis is stable to changes in temperature and salt concentration and pH (in the range of 5–12).The B. subtilis also showed that they are able to biodegrade aliphatic alkanes. The B. subtilis has necessary potential for bioremediation of oil pollution in the environment.

Description: Nowadays, natural resources are under increasing stress which fosters wastewater reuse planning and emphasizes on the decentralized wastewater treatment. Vermifiltration has been described as a viable alternative to treat domestic and urban wastewater, but few studies have focused on the impact of different filter packings on vermifiltration performance. This study evaluates the effect of vermicompost and sawdust in a single-stage vermifilter (VF) for urban wastewater treatment. After an acclimation period of 45 days, urban wastewater from a combined sewage collection system was applied continuously for 24 h. Earthworm stock density was of 20 g L −1 , HRT of 6 h, HLR of 0.89 m 3 m −2 day −1 and OLR of 7.38 g BOD 5 day −1 . System performance was assessed by the removal efficiencies of BOD 5 , COD, TSS, NH 4 + , TN and TP, and fecal coliforms and helminth eggs elimination. Vermicompost (VE) and sawdust (SE) were tested, using an earthworm abundance of 20 g L −1 . Treatment efficiencies were 91.3% for BOD 5 , 87.6% for COD, 98.4% for TSS and 76.5% for NH 4 + in VE, and 90.5% for BOD 5 , 79.7% for COD, 98.4% for TSS and 63.4% for NH 4 + in SE. Earthworms contributed to reduce NH 4 + and TN removal and to increase NO 3 − concentration. No treatment was able to eliminate fecal coliforms down to guidelines values for wastewater irrigation as helminth eggs were completely eliminated. Single-stage vermifiltration system using both filter packings is inconsistent and cannot meet EU guideline values for discharge in sensitive water bodies and WHO guidelines for irrigation with treated wastewater.

Description: Poly(3-hydroxyalkanoates) (PHAs) are the bioplastics that are stored in many genera of bacteria as carbon and energy storage polyester granules. PHAs have established themselves as strong competitors to conventional plastics. This study reports the isolation of PHA-accumulating bacteria from local environment and their PHA characterization. Two potential strains identified as Pseudomonas aeruginosa strain IFS (Accession no. JQ041638) and P. aeruginosa strain 30N (Accession no. JQ041639) based on 16S rRNA gene sequence identity were cultivated under nitrogen limited conditions to study their PHA biosynthesis capabilities. The strain IFS and strain 30N produced 1.36 and 1.40 gl −1 dry biomass with percentage PHA contents of 44.85 and 45.74%, respectively, when grown on glucose as carbon source. The PHA was identified as poly(3-hydroxybutyrate-co-3-hydroxyvalerate) (PHBV) by fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and gas chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry (GC–MS). The PHA synthase genes of these strains were isolated, sequenced and analyzed using bioinformatic tools that showed they belonging to type 2 PHA synthases and presented their evolutionary relationships with PHA synthases of other Pseudomonas species. The experimental results of this study highlight the importance of these strains for future use of bacterial biopolymer production growing on simple and inexpensive carbon sugars.

Description: Graphene oxide nanosheets were synthesized by electrochemical exfoliation. X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, atomic force microscopy, Raman spectrometry and Fourier transform infrared spectrometry were used to characterize crystal structure, particle size, thickness and function groups of the nanosheets. The nanosheets were examined for adsorption of methyl orange, an anionic dye, in aqueous solution at different pHs and temperatures. The maximum adsorption capacity of methyl orange on graphene oxide nanosheets obtained from the Langmuir isotherm was 138.69 mg/g at pH 2.0, which is larger than that of other carbonaceous adsorbents. The large adsorption affinity of graphene oxide nanosheets to methyl orange might be due to the presence of hydrogen bonding and π – π interaction between methyl orange and graphene oxide nanosheets. Adsorption kinetics followed a pseudo-second-order kinetic model, and the isotherm adsorption results were fitted with Langmuir isotherm model in a monolayer adsorption manner. The thermodynamic studies indicated that the adsorption reaction was a spontaneous physisorption process.

Description: Using methods to estimate the value of environmental goods seems to be essential for economic planning and moving toward development. In this paper, using methods of discrete payment vehicle (dichotomous choice), i.e., single-bounded and Double-Bounded Dichotomous Choice, the value of air pollution in Tehran and households’ willingness to pay to improve air quality, in four selected regions (Shahr-e-Ray, Shoosh, Haft-e-Tir and Tajrish) is estimated and the corresponding results of these two techniques were compared. The results showed that the total value of air quality improvement, calculated through two techniques of Double-Bounded and Single-Bounded Dichotomous Choice were, respectively, 2,398,657,500 and 1,492,566,000 thousands Rials (1USD = 35,000R) in a year and weighted mean of each citizen’s willingness to pay to improve air quality, calculated through these two methods was estimated to be 282,192 and 175,596 Rials in a year, respectively. Considering the annual damage to health, for any 1% increase in pollutants and yearly cost of pollution reduction which are, respectively, 1,199,000,000 and 7,336,000,000 thousands Rials, it was determined that citizens’ willingness to pay through two methods includes 20 and 30% of the cost of pollution control, respectively, while 70% of pollution is due to mobile sources. However, citizens’ low willingness to pay is attributed to citizens’ distrust of government policies as well as their ignorance of the harmful effects of air pollution. In general, the results of this study, with regard to the cost of pollution from Single-Bounded Dichotomous Choice are closer to actual market conditions.

Description: Applying biodegradable polymers in membrane preparation for separation processes is expected to be helpful in solving waste disposal problem. In this study, biodegradable blend membranes of cellulose acetate (CA)/poly(butylene succinate) (PBS) were prepared and the microorganisms possessing the ability of degrading them were isolated from soil. The isolates were classified into two groups of bacteria and fungi. The membranes biodegradation after cultivation by the isolates in liquid media was further confirmed by weight loss measurement, Fourier transform infrared analysis and scanning electron microscopy. Findings revealed that CA degradation could be improved in the blend membrane structure. Moreover, strain BG106 and BG111 could degrade the membranes at the fastest rate among the other bacteria and fungi, respectively. To our knowledge, BG111 was found to belong to Alternaria sp. and this is the first report of its PBS degradation activity. Moreover, the PBS degradability of BG104 ( B. Safensis ), BG105 ( Achromobacter insuavis ) and BG106 ( Brevibacterium halotolerans) strains was reported for the first time.

Description: Recently, microalgae are considered as lipid sources for biodiesel production. A photobioreactor was designed and fabricated for Scenedesmus sp. microalgae cultivation. The effect of several nitrogen sources, light intensity, iron ions, silicon, magnesium sulfate and ethanol concentrations on Scenedesmus sp. microalgae growth were investigated. For incubation period of 8 days, sodium nitrate and ammonium carbonate were the best nitrogen sources with biomass concentrations of 2.373 and 2.254 g L −1 , respectively. Microalgae growth was reduced using nitrogen concentrations above 0.7 g L −1 . In the first 10 days of incubation, maximum cell dry weight (0.7 g L −1 ) was obtained with light intensity of 10,000 lx, whiles after that, the results were desired (1 g L −1 ) using interior lighting at 7500 lx. Magnesium sulfate had a positive effect on cell growth. The biomass concentration of 1.65 g L −1 was obtained using 0.06 g L −1 magnesium sulfate. Maximum obtained biomass with silicon (0.7 Mm), ethanol (1.8 mL L −1 ) and ferric ammonium citrate (0.02 g L −1 ) was 1.7 and 1.3 and 2.16 g L −1 , respectively. Logistic model was found to be a suitable model for cell growth forecast. Fatty acid analysis showed that composition of the most dominant synthesized fatty acids, palmitic and oleic acids, was 21.16 and 33.58%, respectively. Oil produced by Scenedesmus sp. microalgae composed of 49.08% saturated and 43.53% unsaturated fatty acids has a suitable composition for a desired biodiesel.

Description: Zeolite Socony Mobil-5 (ZSM5)-supported nano-zero-valent iron (NZVI@ZSM5) was synthesized using homogenous precipitation method. The prepared particles were characterized by transmission electron microscope (TEM), field emission scanning electron microscope (FESEM), atomic force microscope, X-ray diffraction spectroscopy and Brunauer–Emmett–Teller as well as Fourier transform spectroscopy. The TEM image confirms the formation of NZVI particles with average size of 15 nm within ZSM5 pores. Moreover, the ability of the NZVI@ZSM5 in nitrate removal from industrial wastewaters was tested. The effects of different parameters such as solution pH, NZVI@ZSM5-nitrate solution contact time, amounts of NZVI@ZSM5, initial nitrate concentration and nitrate solution volume on removal efficiency were investigated. More than 97% nitrate ion was removed at pH = 2.5, 30 min contact time, and 0.55 g NZVI@ZSM5 for 100 mL of 50 µg mL −1 nitrate. It was also shown that among the four fitted adsorption isotherms, Langmuir isotherm gives the best description of the adsorption process. Kinetic studies showed that nitrate removal using NZVI@ZSM5 obeys pseudo-second-order kinetics ( R 2  = 0.9998). The present method was successfully applied to the removal of nitrate contents of different wastewater gathered from the different industries located in the Khuzestan province, Iran. The reduction in their nitrate contents was in the range of 94–99%.

Description: The quantity and quality of dissolved organic matters have been widely characterized by fluorescence spectroscopy, yet the relationship between the fluorescence properties of dissolved organic matters and its molecular composition remains poorly described in the literature. Here, we measured the fluorescence excitation–emission matrix of 17 well-characterized humic substance standards to determine a range of fluorescence parameters, including classical fluorescence indices (e.g., fluorescence index, biological index and humification index) and parameters derived from parallel factor analysis (e.g., component contribution). Relationships between humic substance’s fluorescence and compositional parameters were then statistically examined using canonical correspondence and simple correlation analyses. The canonical correspondence analysis generally suggested that most fluorescence parameters determined here are highly associated with the amount of aliphatic and aromatic compounds in humic substances. However, the correlation analysis between single molecular and fluorescence parameters indicated that the fluorescence properties of humic substances including the parallel factor analysis component contribution also significantly correlate well with several aspects of the molecular composition of humic substances, such as elemental composition, carbon species, acidic functional group and iron complexation. Overall, our results suggest that measurement of humic substance’s fluorescence is beneficial in understanding the molecular composition and environmental functions of dissolved organic matters in natural and engineered waters.

Description: Nanocomposites can be used as an acoustic panel to adsorb noise. The aim of this study was to evaluate: (1) acoustic, (2) physical, and (3) mechanical properties of agro-environmental nanocomposites. To prepare the nanocomposites, wood flour, PVA glue, and aluminum nanoparticles (between 1 and 4 %) were hardly mixed and heated at near 220 °C for 120 min. In the next step, sound absorption coefficient, transmission loss, water absorption percentage, thickness swelling percentage, density, flexural strength, flexural modulus, tensile strength, and tensile modulus of nanocomposites were measured. This study showed that the increase in nanoparticle percentage led to the increase in flexural strength, flexural modulus, water absorption percentage, thickness swelling percentage, density, and sound absorption coefficient. But, the increase in nanoparticle percentage led to the decrease in tensile strength, tensile modulus, and transmission loss. The authors think that the nanocomposites are suitable as an agro-industrial nanocomposite to reduce noise.

Description: In this study, the influence of pipe materials on chlorine decay, trihalomethanes formation, as well as on microbial community composition of the biofilms formed on the pipe walls in a model full-scale water distribution system was investigated. The chlorine decay experiment showed that the turbulent flow model fitted the experiment data of chlorine decay well, with stainless steel pipe that had the highest rate constant of chlorine decay, and followed by ductile iron pipe and polyethylene pipe. Meanwhile, the formation of trihalomethanes under the three different pipe materials followed the order as: polyethylene pipe 〉 ductile iron pipe 〉 stainless steel pipe. Microbial community analysis showed that biofilm from polyethylene pipe had much higher diversity than that from the ductile iron pipe and stainless steel pipe. In addition, clear differences in the bacterial community structure among biofilms of different pipe materials were observed. The ductile iron pipe biofilm was mainly composed of Enhydrobacter (33.84%) , Propionibacterium (8.08%) and Acinetobacter (5.59%). The polyethylene pipe biofilm contained Sphingomonas (25.25%), Streptococcus (7.64%), Ralstonia (4.83%), Pseudomonas (4.63%), and Escherichia – Shigella (4.71%). The stainless steel pipe biofilm was abundant with Flavobacterium (24.76%), Arcicella (12.03%), and Acidovorax (8.98%). Moreover, the occurrence of opportunistic pathogens was detected, especially in the biofilm of polyethylene pipe, followed by ductile iron pipe and stainless steel pipe. The integrated findings in this study suggest that ductile iron pipe and stainless steel pipe are more suitable as plumbing material than polyethylene pipe in drinking water distribution systems. Graphical Abstract

Description: Electricals and electronic equipments that have reached its utilization period are disposed by the consumer are considered as e-waste. The categories of e-waste range from household appliances to machines used in offices and consumer goods. The rise in problem is due to scarcity of proper place for disposing the e-wastes. Hence, the wastes are disposed in open landfills by the consumers which lead to direct reaction of the e-waste with the environment. The release of harmful toxins and chemicals by the e-wastes causes hazardous effects on living beings. Several processes are introduced in recycling and recovering the harmful metals present in the electronic equipments. The most important reasons for e-waste recycling are waste removal as well as recovery of valuable materials present in the waste. Developed countries such as USA and UK follow some strict rules and regulations about managing the increasing amount of e-wastes, whereas India still needs to have a rigid law for the e-waste management. Prior recycling and recovering the important metals from electronic wastes, it is crucial to ascertain the amount of the metal present in the e-waste. Plastics followed by metals are the main components found in electronic wastes. Hazardous metals such as copper, lead and cadmium are predominant in almost all kinds of e-wastes. Determination of the components present in the electronic wastes guides for the proper path to be followed for recovering the components from the wastes. The review deals with status of e-waste across the world and methods of recovery and management.

Description: The concentrations of 27 major and trace elements are determined in surface water samples collected from 48 sites of diverse waterways in four states (Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Karnataka, and Telangana) of South India. The aims of this study are to identify the element distribution, comparatively assess the pollution risk, and evaluate human health risks related to diverse waterways in the study area. The results indicate that elements such as Cr, Se, As, Fe, and Mn are the major pollutants, as their concentrations exceeded the acceptable national and international water quality standards in several sites of Ennore, Adyar, Cooum, Periyar, and Vrishabhavathi rivers. Furthermore, statistical analysis reveals that the Ennore, Adyar, Cooum, Periyar, and Kaveri river basins are affected by various anthropogenic activities, leading to moderate-to-high pollution by As, Cr, Mn, Fe, and Se. Potential pollution sources are industrial waste, sewage intrusion, paint industry waste, and automobile runoff. Overall, the investigated sites are categorized into three major groups: highly, moderately, and least polluted. Risk on human health by metals is then evaluated using hazard quotients (HQs) and carcinogenic risk evaluation; the results indicated that As with HQ 〉1 is the most hazardous pollutant, which could lead to non-carcinogenic and carcinogenic concerns, particularly in children. This study helps in establishing pollutant loading reduction goal and the total maximum daily loads and consequently contributes to preserving public health and developing water conservation strategies.