Search results for: bacterial aerobic granular sludge

Authors: Daniel Martin, Roberto Rodriguez, Derek Woller, Chris Reuter, Lonnie Black, Mohamed Latheef

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The grasshoppers comprised of heterogeneous assemblages of Acrididae (Family: Orthoptera) species periodically reach outbreak levels by their gregarious behavior and voracious feeding habits, devouring stems and leaves of food crops and rangeland pasture. Cattle consume about 1.5-2.5% of their body weight in forage per day, so pound for pound, a grasshopper will eat 12-20 times as much plant material as a steer and cause serious economic damage to the cattle industry, especially during a drought when forage is already scarce. Grasshoppers annually consume more than 20% of rangeland forages in the western United States at an estimated loss of $1.25 billion per year in forage. A remotely piloted aerial application system with both a spreader and spray application system was used to apply granular insect bait and a liquid formulation of Carbaryl for control of grasshopper infestations on rangeland in New Mexico, United States. Pattern testing and calibration of both the granular and liquid application systems were conducted to determine proper application rate set up and distribution pattern. From these tests, an effective swath was calculated. Results showed that 14 days after application, granular baits were only effective on those grasshopper species that accepted the baits. The liquid formulation at 16 ounces per acre was highly successful at controlling all grasshopper species. Results of this study indicated that a remotely piloted aerial application system can be used to effectively deliver grasshopper control products in both granular and liquid form. However, the spray application treatment proved to be most effective and efficient for all grasshopper species present.

Keywords: Carbaryl, Grasshopper, Insecticidal Efficacy, Remotely Piloted Aerial Application System

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Authors: A. Chávez, A. Rodríguez, F. Pinzón

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Society is concerned about measures of environmental, economic and social impacts generated in the solid waste disposal. These places of confinement, also known as landfills, are locations where problems of pollution and damage to human health are reduced. They are technically designed and operated, using engineering principles, storing the residue in a small area, compact it to reduce volume and covering them with soil layers. Problems preventing liquid (leachate) and gases produced by the decomposition of organic matter. Despite planning and site selection for disposal, monitoring and control of selected processes, remains the dilemma of the leachate as extreme concentration of pollutants, devastating soil, flora and fauna; aggressive processes requiring priority attention. A biological technology is the activated sludge system, used for tributaries with high pollutant loads. Since transforms biodegradable dissolved and particulate matter into CO2, H2O and sludge; transform suspended and no Settleable solids; change nutrients as nitrogen and phosphorous; and degrades heavy metals. The microorganisms that remove organic matter in the processes are in generally facultative heterotrophic bacteria, forming heterogeneous populations. Is possible to find unicellular fungi, algae, protozoa and rotifers, that process the organic carbon source and oxygen, as well as the nitrogen and phosphorus because are vital for cell synthesis. The mixture of the substrate, in this case sludge leachate, molasses and wastewater is maintained ventilated by mechanical aeration diffusers. Considering as the biological processes work to remove dissolved material (< 45 microns), generating biomass, easily obtained by decantation processes. The design consists of an artificial support and aeration pumps, favoring develop microorganisms (denitrifying) using oxygen (O) with nitrate, resulting in nitrogen (N) in the gas phase. Thus, avoiding negative effects of the presence of ammonia or phosphorus. Overall the activated sludge system includes about 8 hours of hydraulic retention time, which does not prevent the demand for nitrification, which occurs on average in a value of MLSS 3,000 mg/L. The extended aeration works with times greater than 24 hours detention; with ratio of organic load/biomass inventory under 0.1; and average stay time (sludge age) more than 8 days. This project developed a pilot system with sludge leachate from Doña Juana landfill - RSDJ –, located in Bogota, Colombia, where they will be subjected to a process of activated sludge and extended aeration through a sequential Bach reactor - SBR, to be dump in hydric sources, avoiding ecological collapse. The system worked with a dwell time of 8 days, 30 L capacity, mainly by removing values of BOD and COD above 90%, with initial data of 1720 mg/L and 6500 mg/L respectively. Motivating the deliberate nitrification is expected to be possible commercial use diffused aeration systems for sludge leachate from landfills.

Keywords: sludge, landfill, leachate, SBR

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Authors: Zahir Bakiri, Saci Nacefa

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In this paper a comparison in made between two models, with and without dispersion term, and focused on the characterization of the movement of the sludge blanket in the secondary sedimentation tank using the solid flux theory and the velocity settling. This allowed us develop a one-dimensional models, with and without dispersion based on a thorough experimental study carried out in situ and the application of online data which are the mass load flow, transfer concentration, and influent characteristic. On the other hand, in the proposed model, the new settling velocity law (double-exponential function) used is based on the Vesilind function.

Keywords: wastewater, activated sludge, sedimentation, settling velocity, settling models

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Authors: M.Ayazi, N. Golshan Ebrahimi

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The development of antibacterial surface has devoted extensive researches and important field due to the growing antimicrobial resistance strains. The superhydrophobic surface has raised attention because of reducing bacteria adhesion in the absence of antibiotic agents. Evaluating the current development antibacterial surface has to be investigating to consider the potential of applying superhydrophobic surface to reduce bacterial adhesion or role of patterned surfaces on it. In this study, we present different samples with bio-inspired hierarchical and microstructures to consider their ability in reducing bacterial adhesion. The structures have inspired from rice-like pattern and lotus-leaf that developed on the polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) and polypropylene (PP). The results of the attachment behaviors have considered on two bacteria strains of gram-negative Escherichia coli (E. coli) bacteria and gram-positive Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus). The reduction of bacteria adhesion on these roughness surfaces demonstrated the effectiveness of rinsing ability on removing bacterial cells on structured plastic surfaces. Results have also offered the important role of bacterial species, material chemistry and hierarchical structure to prevent bacterial adhesion.

Keywords: hierarchical structure, self-cleaning, lotus-effect, bactericidal

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Authors: Mohamed A. Eid, Sobhy M. Aly, Marwa M. Ibrahim, Nadia L. Radwan

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To investigate the interaction effects of vitamin D supplementation combined with aerobic exercises (AE) and conventional physical therapy program (CPTP) on balance and physical performance in children with Down syndrome (DS).Methods: A randomized controlled trial was conducted for 38 children with DS, with ages ranging from 8 to 12 years. They were divided randomly to two groups. The control group (n=19) received the CPTP, while the study group (n=19) received the CPTP, AE, and vitamin D in the form of an oral daily dose of vitamin D3 400 IU (Cholecalciferol). Evaluation of balance by using the Biodex Stability System and physical performance by using the six-minute walk test (6MWT)was performed before and after 12 weeks of the treatment program. Findings: All groups showed a significant improvement in balance and physical performance after treatment (p < 0.05). The study group showed a significant improvement in balance and physical performancecompared with that of the control group (p < 0.05). Conclusion: Vitamin D supplementation combined with AE and CPTP could improve balance and physical performance in children with DS. Therefore, vitamin D and AEshould be considered as adjunctive to the rehabilitation program of these children.

Keywords: aerobic exercises, balance, down syndrome, physical performance, vitamin D

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Authors: Lata Kumari Dhanesh Tiwary, Pradeep Kumar Mishra

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The effluent coming from various industries such as textile, carpet, food, pharmaceutical and many other industries is big challenge due to its recalcitrant and xenobiotiocs in nature. Recently, biodegradation of dye wastewater through biological means was widely used due to eco-friendly and cost effective with the higher percentage of removal of dye from wastewater. The present study deals with the biodegradation and decolourization of Direct Red 23 dye using indigenously isolated bacterial consortium. The bacterial consortium was isolated from soil sample from dye contaminated site near a cluster of Carpet industries of Bhadohi, Uttar Pradesh, India. The bacterial strain formed consortia were identified and characterized by morphological, biochemical and 16S rRNA gene sequence analysis. The bacterial strain mainly Staphylococcus saprophyticus strain BHUSS X3 (KJ439576), Microbacterium sp. BHUMSp X4 (KJ740222) and Staphylococcus saprophyticus strain BHUSS X5 (KJ439576) were used as consortia for further studies of dye decolorization. Experimental investigations were made in a Sequencing Air- lift bioreactor using the synthetic solution of Direct Red 23 dye by optimizing various parameters for efficient degradation of dye. The effect of several operating parameters such as flow rate, pH, temperature, initial dye concentration and inoculums size on removal of dye was investigated. The efficiency of isolated bacterial consortia from dye contaminated area in Sequencing Air- lift Bioreactor with different concentration of dye between 100-1200 mg/l at different hydraulic rate (HRTs) 26h and 10h. The maximum percentage of dye decolourization 98% was achieved when operated at HRT of 26h. The percentage of decolourization of dye was confirmed by using UV-Vis spectrophotometer and HPLC.

Keywords: carpet industry, bacterial consortia, sequencing air-lift bioreactor

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Authors: Jaromír Marek, Jakub Wiener, Yan Wang

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The main goal of this study was to find simple and industrially applicable production of ion exchangers based on nanofibrous polystyrene matrix and characterization of prepared material. Starting polystyrene nanofibers were sulfonated and crosslinked under appropriate conditions at the same time by sulfuric acid. Strongly acidic cation exchanger was obtained in such a way. The polymer matrix was made from polystyrene nanofibers prepared by Nanospider technology. Various types postpolymerization reactions and other methods of crosslinking were studied. Greatly different behavior between nano and microsize materials was observed. The final nanofibrous material was characterized and compared to common granular ion exchangers and available microfibrous ion exchangers. The sorption properties of nanofibrous ion exchangers were compared with the granular ion exchangers. For nanofibrous ion exchangers of comparable ion exchange capacity was observed considerably faster adsorption kinetics.

Keywords: electrospinning, ion exchangers, nanofibers, polystyrene

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Authors: Waleed S. Alwaneen

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In many countries, cow dung is used as farm manure and for biogas production. Several bacterial strains associated with cow dung such as Campylobacter, Salmonella sp. and Escherichia coli cause serious human diseases. The objective of the present study was to investigate the use of insect larvae including fruit beetle, waxworms and tiger worms to improve the breakdown of agricultural wastes and reduce their pathogen loads. Fresh cow faeces were collected from a cattle farm and distributed into plastic boxes (100 g/box). Each box was provided with 10 larvae of fruit beetle, Waxworms and Tiger worms, respectively. There were 3 replicates in each treatment including the control. Bacteria were isolated weekly from both control and cow faeces to which larvae were added to determine the bacterial populations. Results revealed that the bacterial load was higher in the cow faeces treated with fruit beetles than in the control, while the bacterial load was lower in the cow faeces treated with waxworms and tiger worms than in the control. The activities of the fruit beetle larvae led to the cow faeces being liquefied which provided a more conducive growing media for bacteria. Therefore, higher bacterial load in the cow faeces treated with fruit beetle might be attributed to the liquefaction of cow faeces.

Keywords: fruit beetle, waxworms, tiger worms, waste conditioning, composting

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Authors: Rana Bilal, Faiz-Ul-Hassan, Moazzam Jameel

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There is a dire need to replace high-cost protein with more economical protein to overcome animal protein shortage in developing nations especially countries like Pakistan. In conjunction with these efforts, the current study was planned to evaluate the effects of various dried distillery yeast sludge (DYS) levels on the immune level, egg quality, and performance of layers by replacing soybean meal. The study was designed with two hundred layers of Hy-Line variety. Distillery yeast sludge was dried and ground for 2 mm mesh size and after this proximate and mineral analysis was determined. Five isocaloric and isonitrogeneous feeds were given containing C (control), 5, 10, 15, 20% distillery yeast sludge by replacing soybean meal. The trial was performed in the completely randomized design with five treatments, 4 replicates and 10 hen per replicate. Results demonstrated that feed intake, egg production, feed conversion ratio decreased (P < 0.05) with the increased dietary DYS. However, statistically significant decrease (P < 0.05) was found in hens having DYS20 diet than control. Layers on Diets C, DYS5 and DYS10 exerted a higher immune level than DYS15 and DYS20 diets. Egg weight, eggshell weight, eggshell thickness, egg albumen height as well as haugh unit score were affected significantly by the increased level of DYS. In general, results of this study demonstrated that inclusion of DYS up to 10% showed no adverse effects on health and performance of layers.

Keywords: egg quality, immunity, layers, performance

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Authors: Mian Adnan Kakakhel, NIshita Narwal, Majid Rasta, Shi Xiaotao

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The widespread use of nanoparticles means that they are significantly increasing in the aquatic ecosystem, where they are likely to pose threat to aquatic organism. In particular, the influence of nanoparticles exposure combined with varying water velocities on fish behavior remain poorly understood. Emerging evidences suggested a probable correlation between fish swimming behavior and gut bacterial dysbiosis. Therefore, the current study aimed to investigate the effects of nanomaterials in different water velocities on fish gut bacterial composition, which in results change in fish swimming behavior. The obtained findings showed that the contamination of nanoparticles was reduced as the velocity increased. However, the synergetic effects of nanoparticles and water velocity significantly (p < 0.05) decreased the bacterial composition, which plays a critical role in fish development, metabolism, digestion, enzymes production, and energy production such as Bacteroidetes and Firmicutes. This group of bacterial also support fish in swimming behavior by providing them a significant energy during movement. The obtained findings of this study suggested that the presence of nanoparticles in different water velocities have had a significant correlation with fish gut bacterial dysbiosis, as results the gut dysbiosis had been linked to the change in fish behavior. The study provides an important insight into the mechanisms by which the nanoparticles possibly affect the fish behavior.

Keywords: water velocities, fish behavior, gut bacteria, secondary metabolites, regulation

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Authors: Omar Alhamd, Peter A. Thomas, Trevor J. Greenhough, Annette K. Shrive

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The Pseudomonas syringae species complex includes many plant pathogenic strains with highly specific interactions with varied host species and cultivars. The rapid spread of these bacteria over the last ten years has become a cause for concern. Nanoparticles have previously shown promise in microbiological action. We have therefore investigated in vitro and in vivo the effects of different types and sizes of nanoparticles in order to provide quantitative information about their effect on the bacteria. The effects of several different nanoparticles against several bacteria strains were investigated. The effect of NP on bacterial growth was studied by measuring the optical density, biochemical and nutritional tests, and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) to determine the shape and size of NP. Our results indicate that their effects varied, with either a negative or a positive impact on both bacterial and plant growth. Additionally, the methods of exposure to nanoparticles have a crucial role in accumulation, translocation, growth response and bacterial growth. The results of our studies on the behaviour and effects of nanoparticles in model plants showed. Cerium oxide (CeO₂) and silver (Ag) NP showed significant antibacterial activity against several pathogenic bacteria. It was found that titanium nanoparticles (TiO₂) can have either a negative or a positive impact, according to concentration and size. It is also thought that environmental conditions can have a major influence on bacterial growth. Studies were therefore also carried out under some environmental stress conditions to test bacterial survival and to assess bacterial virulence. All results will be presented including information about the effects of different nanoparticles on Pseudomonas syringae bacteria.

Keywords: plant microbiome, nanoparticles, 16S rRNA gene sequencing, bacterial survival

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Authors: Mubashir Hussain, Mu Lv, Xiaohan Dong, Zhiyang Li, Bin Liu, Nongyue He

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Detection and classification of microbes have a vast range of applications in biomedical engineering especially in detection, characterization, and quantification of bacterial contaminants. For identification of pathogens, different techniques are emerging in the field of biomedical engineering. Latest technology uses light scattering, capable of identifying different pathogens without any need for biochemical processing. Bacterial Pathogens Identification System (BPIS) which uses a laser beam, passes through the sample and light scatters off. An assembly of photodetectors surrounded by the sample at different angles to detect the scattering of light. The algorithm of the system consists of two parts: (a) Library files, and (b) Comparator. Library files contain data of known species of bacterial microbes in the form of binned plots, while comparator compares data of unknown sample with library files. Using collected data of unknown bacterial species, highest voltage values stored in the form of peaks and arranged in 3D histograms to find the frequency of occurrence. Resulting data compared with library files of known bacterial species. If sample data matching with any library file of known bacterial species, sample identified as a matched microbe. An experiment performed to identify three different bacteria particles: Enterococcus faecalis, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and Escherichia coli. By applying algorithm using library files of given samples, results were compromising. This system is potentially applicable to several biomedical areas, especially those related to cell morphology.

Keywords: microbial identification, laser scattering, peak identification, binned plots classification

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Authors: Zakirul Islam, Yugo Kumokawa, Quoc Thinh Tran, Motoki Kubo

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Clubroot is a disease of cruciferous plant caused by soil born pathogen Plasmodiophora brassicae and can significantly limit the production through rapid spreading. The present study was designed to investigate the effect of cultivation practices (chemical and organic soils) on clubroot disease development in Brassica rapa. Disease index and root bacterial composition were investigated for both chemical and organic soils. The bacterial biomass and diversity in organic soil were higher than those in chemical soil. Disease severity was distinct for two different cultivation methods. The number of endophytic bacteria decreased in the infected root for both soils. The increased number of endophytic bacterial number led to reduce the proliferation of pathogen spore inside the root and thus reduced the disease severity in organic plants.

Keywords: clubroot disease, bacterial biomass, root infection, disease index, chemical cultivation, organic cultivation

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Authors: Raphael C. Zero, Marita V. Cardozo, Thiago A. S. S. Rocha, Mariana T. Kihara, Fernando A. Ávila, Fabrício S. Oliveira

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There are several fixative and preservative solutions for use on cadavers, many of them using formaldehyde as the fixative or anatomical part preservative. In some countries, such as Brazil, this toxic agent has been increasingly restricted. The objective of this study was to microbiologically identify and quantify the key agents in tanks containing 96GL ethanol or sodium chloride solutions, used respectively as fixatives and preservatives of cat cadavers. Eight adult cat corpses, three females and five males, with an average weight of 4.3 kg, were used. After injection via the external common carotid artery (120 ml/kg, 95% 96GL ethyl alcohol and 5% pure glycerin), the cadavers were fixed in a plastic tank with 96GL ethanol for 60 days. After fixing, they were stored in a 30% sodium chloride aqueous solution for 120 days in a similar tank. Samples were collected at the start of the experiment - before the animals were placed in the ethanol tanks, and monthly thereafter. The bacterial count was performed by Pour Plate Method in BHI agar (Brain Heart Infusion) and the plates were incubated aerobically and anaerobically for 24h at 37ºC. MacConkey agar, SPS agar (Sulfite Polymyxin Sulfadizine) and MYP Agar Base were used to isolate the microorganisms. There was no microbial growth in the samples prior to alcohol fixation. After 30 days of fixation in the alcohol solution, total aerobic and anaerobic (<1.0 x 10 CFU/ml) were found and Pseudomonas sp., Staphylococcus sp., Clostridium sp. were the identified agents. After 60 days in the alcohol fixation solution, total aerobes (<1.0 x 10 CFU/ml) and total anaerobes (<2.2 x 10 CFU/mL) were found, and the identified agents were the same. After 30 days of storage in the aqueous solution of 30% sodium chloride, total aerobic (<5.2 x 10 CFU/ml) and total anaerobes (<3.7 x 10 CFU/mL) were found and the agents identified were Staphylococcus sp., Clostridium sp., and fungi. After 60 days of sodium chloride storage, total aerobic (<3.0 x 10 CFU / ml) and total anaerobes (<7.0 x 10 CFU/mL) were found and the identified agents remained the same: Staphylococcus sp., Clostridium sp., and fungi. The microbiological count was low and visual inspection did not reveal signs of contamination in the tanks. There was no strong odor or purification, which proved the technique to be microbiologically effective in fixing and preserving the cat cadavers for the four-month period in which they are provided to undergraduate students of University of Veterinary Medicine for surgery practice. All experimental procedures were approved by the Municipal Legal Department (protocol 02.2014.000027-1). The project was funded by FAPESP (protocol 2015-08259-9).

Keywords: anatomy, fixation, microbiology, small animal, surgery

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Authors: Ifeanyichukwu Edeh, Tim Overton, Steve Bowra

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Currently biodiesel is produced from plant oils or animal’s fats by a liquid-phase catalysed transesterification process at low temperature. Although biodiesel is renewable and to a large extent sustainable, inherent properties such as poor cold flow, low oxidation stability, low cetane value restrict application to blends with fossil fuels. An alternative to biodiesel is renewable diesel produced by catalytic hydrotreating of oils and fats and is considered a drop in fuel because its properties are similar to petroleum diesel. In addition to developing alternative productions routes there is continued interest in reducing the cost of the feed stock, waste cooking oils and fats are increasingly used as the feedstocks due to low cost. However, use of oils and fat are highly adulterated resulting in high free fatty acid content which turn impacts on the efficiency of FAME production. Therefore, in light of the need to develop, alternative lipid feed stocks and related efficient catalysis the present study investigates the potential of producing renewable diesel from the lipids-extracted from activated sludge, a waste water treatment by-product, through catalytic hydrothermal decarboxylation. The microbial lipids were first extracted from the activated sludge using the Folch et al method before hydrothermal decarboxylation reactions were carried out using palladium (Pd/C) and platinum (Pt/C) on activated carbon as the catalysts in a batch reactor. The impact of three temperatures 290, 300, 330 °C and residence time between 30 min and 4hrs was assessed. At the end of the reaction, the products were recovered using organic solvents and characterized using gas chromatography (GC). The principle products of the reaction were pentadecane and heptadecane. The highest yields of pentadecane and heptadecane from lipid-extract were 23.23% and 15.21%, respectively. These yields were obtained at 290 °C and residence time 1h using Pt/C. To the best of our knowledge, the current work is the first investigation on the hydrothermal decarboxylation of lipid-extract from activated sludge.

Keywords: activated sludge, lipid, hydrothermal decarboxylation, renewable diesel

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Authors: Abdessemed Zineb, Atia Yahia, Yeza Salima

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Water is self-purified by activated sludge process which makes its uniqueness. The main goal is the microbial biocenosis study of the input and output water of the waste water treatment system plant Timgad. 89.47% of the identified biocenosis belongs to ɤ-Proteobacteria while the remaining 10.52 % is equally divided between α-Proteobacteria and β-Proteobacteria. The antibiotics susceptibility profiles reveal that over 30 % are wild strains while the penicillinases are often present (11.30-20 %) with also other profiles. This proportion is worrying that the water discharged join the Oued Soltez used for irrigation. This disadvantage involves the installation of a chlorination step.

Keywords: activated sludge, biocenosis, antibiotics profiles, penicillinases, physic-chemical quality

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Authors: Pompilia Buzatu, Hazim Qiblawey, Albert Odai, Jana Jamaleddin, Mustafa Nasser, Simon J. Judd

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Membrane bioreactor (MBR) technology is challenged by the tendency for the membrane permeability to decrease due to ‘clogging’. Clogging includes ‘sludging’, the filling of the membrane channels with sludge solids, and ‘ragging’, the aggregation of short filaments to form long rag-like particles. Both sludging and ragging demand manual intervention to clear out the solids, which is time-consuming, labour-intensive and potentially damaging to the membranes. These factors impact on costs more significantly than membrane surface fouling which, unlike clogging, is largely mitigated by the chemical clean. However, practical evaluation of MBR clogging has thus far been limited. This paper presents the results of recent work attempting to quantify sludging and clogging based on simple bench-scale tests. Results from a novel ragging simulation trial indicated that rags can be formed within 24-36 hours from dispersed < 5 mm-long filaments at concentrations of 5-10 mg/L under gently agitated conditions. Rag formation occurred for both a cotton wool standard and samples taken from an operating municipal MBR, with between 15% and 75% of the added fibrous material forming a single rag. The extent of rag formation depended both on the material type or origin – lint from laundering operations forming zero rags – and the filament length. Sludging rates were quantified using a bespoke parallel-channel test cell representing the membrane channels of an immersed flat sheet MBR. Sludge samples were provided from two local MBRs, one treating municipal and the other industrial effluent. Bulk sludge properties measured comprised mixed liquor suspended solids (MLSS) concentration, capillary suction time (CST), particle size, soluble COD (sCOD) and rheology (apparent viscosity μₐ vs shear rate γ). The fouling and sludging propensity of the sludge was determined using the test cell, ‘fouling’ being quantified as the pressure incline rate against flux via the flux step test (for which clogging was absent) and sludging by photographing the channel and processing the image to determine the ratio of the clogged to unclogged regions. A substantial difference in rheological and fouling behaviour was evident between the two sludge sources, the industrial sludge having a higher viscosity but less shear-thinning than the municipal. Fouling, as manifested by the pressure increase Δp/Δt, as a function of flux from classic flux-step experiments (where no clogging was evident), was more rapid for the industrial sludge. Across all samples of both sludge origins the expected trend of increased fouling propensity with increased CST and sCOD was demonstrated, whereas no correlation was observed between clogging rate and these parameters. The relative contribution of fouling and clogging was appraised by adjusting the clogging propensity via increasing the MLSS both with and without a commensurate increase in the COD. Results indicated that whereas for the municipal sludge the fouling propensity was affected by the increased sCOD, there was no associated increased in the sludging propensity (or cake formation). The clogging rate actually decreased on increasing the MLSS. Against this, for the industrial sludge the clogging rate dramatically increased with solids concentration despite a decrease in the soluble COD. From this was surmised that sludging did not relate to fouling.

Keywords: clogging, membrane bioreactors, ragging, sludge

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Authors: M. Zielinski, M. Debowski, P. Rusanowska, A. Glowacka-Gil, M. Zielinska, A. Cydzik-Kwiatkowska, J. Kazimierowicz

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Technologies for the micro-biogas plant with heating and mixing systems are presented as a part of the Research Coordination for a Low-Cost Biomethane Production at Small and Medium Scale Applications (Record Biomap). The main objective of the Record Biomap project is to build a network of operators and scientific institutions interested in cooperation and the development of promising technologies in the sector of small and medium-sized biogas plants. The activities carried out in the project will bridge the gap between research and market and reduce the time of implementation of new, efficient technological and technical solutions. Reactor with simultaneously mixing and heating system is a concrete tank with a rectangular cross-section. In the reactor, heating is integrated with the mixing of substrate and anaerobic sludge. This reactor is solution dedicated for substrates with high solids content, which cannot be introduced to the reactor with pumps, even with positive displacement pumps. Substrates are poured to the reactor and then with a screw pump, they are mixed with anaerobic sludge. The pumped sludge, flowing through the screw pump, is simultaneously heated by a heat exchanger. The level of the fermentation sludge inside the reactor chamber is above the bottom edge of the cover. Cover of the reactor is equipped with the screw pump driver. Inside the reactor, an electric motor is installed that is driving a screw pump. The heated sludge circulates in the digester. The post-fermented sludge is collected using a drain well. The inlet to the drain well is below the level of the sludge in the digester. The biogas is discharged from the reactor by the biogas intake valve located on the cover. The technology is very useful for fermentation of lignocellulosic biomass and substrates with high content of dry mass (organic wastes). The other technology is a reactor for micro-biogas plant with a pressure mixing system. The reactor has a form of plastic or concrete tank with a circular cross-section. The effective mixing of sludge is ensured by profiled at 90° bottom of the tank. Substrates for fermentation are supplied by an inlet well. The inlet well is equipped with a cover that eliminates odour release. The introduction of a new portion of substrates is preceded by pumping of digestate to the disposal well. Optionally, digestate can gravitationally flow to digestate storage tank. The obtained biogas is discharged into the separator. The valve supplies biogas to the blower. The blower presses the biogas from the fermentation chamber in such a way as to facilitate the introduction of a new portion of substrates. Biogas is discharged from the reactor by valve that enables biogas removal but prevents suction from outside the reactor.

Keywords: biogas, digestion, heating system, mixing system

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Authors: Sanam Pudasaini, A. T. K. Perera, Ahmed Syed Shaheer Uddin, Sum Huan Ng, Chun Yang

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Development of high-efficiency and environment friendly bacterial inactivation methods is of great importance for preventing waterborne diseases which are one of the leading causes of death in the world. Traditional bacterial inactivation methods (e.g., ultraviolet radiation and chlorination) have several limitations such as longer treatment time, formation of toxic byproducts, bacterial regrowth, etc. Recently, an electroporation-based inactivation method was introduced as a substitute. Here, an electroporation-based continuous flow microfluidic device equipped with an array of micropillars is developed, and the device achieved high bacterial inactivation performance ( > 99.9%) within a short exposure time ( < 1 s). More than 99.9% reduction of Escherichia coli bacteria was obtained for the flow rate of 1 mL/hr, and no regrowth of bacteria was observed. Images from scanning electron microscope confirmed the formation of electroporation-induced nano-pore within the cell membrane. Through numerical simulation, it has been shown that sufficiently large electric field strength (3 kV/cm), required for bacterial electroporation, were generated using PDMS micropillars for an applied voltage of 300 V. Further, in this method of inactivation, there is no involvement of chemicals and the formation of harmful by-products is also minimum.

Keywords: electroporation, high-efficiency, inactivation, microfluidics, micropillar

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Authors: F. Ben Abdelghani, W. Maherezi

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Dredging operations generate, each year, a great quantity of marine sediments. These raw materials can not be used in road construction without a specific treatment process. Sediments suitability tests has shown that most of studied sediments are not suitable to be used in road construction. In order to improve their compacity and their mechanical performance, addition of a granular material is recommended. The use of a dredged sand, to improve the granular mixture containing sediments, allows a better management of the two types of dredge materials (sand and sediment). In this study, a new road material containing dredged marine sediments and dredged sand is formulated and treated by adding various binders. Mechanical performance investigation of different mixtures by measuring Proctor-IPI values and simple compressive strengths is realized.

Keywords: dredged sediments, suitability tests, road construction, hydraulic binder, mechanical performance

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Authors: Sabrina Barsky, Ashley Monks

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In humans, exercise improves symptoms of various pathological states, although exercise adaptations seem to differ in response to sex. Skeletal muscle anabolism is thought to be regulated by androgen receptor (AR) through poorly specified mechanisms. Interactions of AR and exercise on muscle phenotype remain inconclusive in males, and undetermined in females. We hypothesized that sex differences in exercise adaptations are regulated by the androgenic system and the type of exercise performed. Here we examined interactions between a muscle-specific AR overexpression transgene (HSA-AR) and forced aerobic exercise paradigm on muscle and adipose exercise adaptation in male and female rats. We used dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) to examine body composition adaptations post 9-week exercise protocol. We replicated the effects of HSA-AR on body composition, with males only having increased % lean mass and reduced % fat mass (P<0.05). Aerobic exercise improved lean body phenotype significantly, with lesser indices of total and % fat mass (P<0.01) in both sexes. Sex-specific effects of exercise included decreased total body mass (P<0.01) in males and increased lean mass % (P<0.001) in females. Surprisingly, neither AR manipulation nor exercise affected bone parameters in either sex. This varied response in total mass and lean mass according to exercise presents a sexually dimorphic response to exercise. Neither sex showed an interaction between HSA-AR and forced aerobic exercise on body composition. Future work is proposed to examine the effects of exercise type (aerobic versus resistance) and the role of gonadal androgens in sexually dimorphic exercise-mediated mitochondrial adaptations. This work implicates the development of sex-specific exercise therapies.

Keywords: androgen receptor, forced exercise, muscle physiology, sexual dimorphism

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Authors: Sachin B. Patil, Narendra M. Kanhe

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A typical cane molasses based distillery generates 15 L of waste water per liter of alcohol production. Distillery waste with COD of over 1,00,000 mg/l and BOD of over 30,000 mg/l ranks high amongst the pollutants produced by industries both in magnitude and strength. Treatment and safe disposal of this waste is a challenging task since long. The high strength of waste water renders aerobic treatment very expensive and physico-chemical processes have met with little success. Thermophilic anaerobic treatment of distillery waste may provide high degree of treatment and better recovery of biogas. It may prove more feasible in most part of tropical country like India, where temperature is suitable for thermophilic micro-organisms. Researchers have reviled that, at thermophilic conditions due to increased destruction rate of organic matter and pathogens, higher digestion rate can be achieved. Literature review reveals that the variety of anaerobic reactors including anaerobic lagoon, conventional digester, anaerobic filter, two staged fixed film reactors, sludge bed and granular bed reactors have been studied, but little attempts have been made to evaluate the usefulness of thermophilic anaerobic treatment for treating distillery waste. The present study has been carried out, to study feasibility of thermophilic anaerobic digestion to facilitate the design of full scale reactor. A pilot scale anaerobic fixed film fixed bed reactor (AFFFB) of capacity 25m3 was designed, fabricated, installed and commissioned for thermophilic (55-65°C) anaerobic digestion at a constant pH of 6.5-7.5, because these temperature and pH ranges are considered to be optimum for biogas recovery from distillery wastewater. In these conditions, working of the reactor was studied, for different hydraulic retention times (HRT) (0.25days to 12days) and variable organic loading rates (361.46 to 7.96 Kg COD/m3d). The parameters such as flow rate and temperature, various chemical parameters such as pH, chemical oxygen demands (COD), biogas quantity, and biogas composition were regularly monitored. It was observed that, with the increase in OLR, the biogas production was increased, but the specific biogas yield decreased. Similarly, with the increase in HRT, the biogas production got decrease, but the specific biogas yield was increased. This may also be due to the predominant activity of acid producers to methane producers at the higher substrate loading rates. From the present investigation, it can be concluded that for thermophilic conditions the highest COD removal percentage was obtained at an HRT of 08 days, thereafter it tends to decrease from 8 to 12 days HRT. There is a little difference between COD removal efficiency of 8 days HRT (74.03%) and 5 day HRT (78.06%), therefore it would not be feasible to increase the reactor size by 1.5 times for mere 4 percent more efficiency. Hence, 5 days HRT is considered to be optimum, at which the biogas yield was 98 m3/day and specific biogas yield was 0.385 CH4 m3/Kg CODr.

Keywords: spent wash, anaerobic digestion, biomass, biogas

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Authors: Mustafa Yildiz, Ali Sinan Soganci

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Pumice soils are countered in many projects such as transportation roads, channels and residential units throughout the World. The pumice deposits are characterized by the vesicular nature of their particles. When the pumice soils are evaluated considering the geotechnical viewpoint, they differ from silica sands in terms of physical and engineering characteristics. These differences are low grain strength, high friction angle, void ratio and compressibility. At stresses greater than a few hundred kPa, the stress-strain-strength behaviour of these soils is determined by particle crushing. Particle crushing leads to changes in the density and reduction in the components of shear stress due to expansion. In this study, the bearing capacity and behaviour of granular pumice soils compared to sand-gravels were investigated by laboratory model tests. Firstly the geotechnical properties of granular pumice soils were determined; then, the behaviour of pumice soils with an equivalent diameter of sand and gravel soils were investigated by model rectangular and circular foundation types and were compared with each other. For this purpose, basic types of model footing (15*15 cm, 20*20 cm, Φ=15 cm and Φ=20 cm) have been selected. When the experimental results of model bearing capacity are analyzed, the values of sand and gravel bearing capacity tests were found to be 1.0-1.5 times higher than the bearing capacity of pumice the same size. This fact has shown that sand and gravel have a higher bearing capacity than pumice of the similar particle sizes.

Keywords: pumice soils, laboratory model tests, bearing capacity, laboratory model tests, Nevşehir

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Authors: Desouky Abd El Haleem, Sahar Zaki

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This work was conducted to develop a one-step multiplex PCR system for rapid, sensitive, and specific detection of three different bacterial pathogens, Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and Salmonella spp, directly in wastewater without prior isolation on selective media. As a molecular confirmatory test after isolation of the pathogens by classical microbiological methods, PCR-RFLP of their amplified 16S rDNA genes was performed. It was observed that the developed protocols have significance impact in the ability to detect sensitively, rapidly and specifically the three pathogens directly in water within short-time, represents a considerable advancement over more time-consuming and less-sensitive methods for identification and characterization of these kinds of pathogens.

Keywords: multiplex PCR, bacterial pathogens, Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Salmonella spp.

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Authors: Sajjad Shojaeidoust, Mohsen Ghanbarzadeh, Abdolhamid Habibi

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Exercise-induced bronchospasm (EIB) is a transitory condition of airflow obstruction that is associated with physical activities. It is noted that high ventilation can lead to an increase in the heat and reduce in the moisture in airways resistance of trachea. Also causes of pathophysiological mechanism are EIB. Accordingly, studying some parameters of pulmonary function (FVC, FEV1) among active people seems quintessential. The aim of this study was to analyze bronchospasm following the implementation of a program of maximum aerobic exercise in active men at Chamran University of Ahwaz. Method: In this quasi-experimental study, the population consisted of all students at Chamran University. Among from 55 participants, of which, 15 were randomly selected as the experimental group. In this study, the size of the maximum oxygen consumption was initially measured, and then, based on the maximum oxygen consumed, the active individuals were identified. After five minutes’ warm-up, Strand treadmill exercise test was taken (one session) and pulmonary parameters were measured at both pre- and post-tests (spirometer). After data normalization using KS and non-normality of the data, the Wilcoxon test was used to analyze the data. The significance level for all statistical surveys was considered p≤0/05. Results: The results showed that the ventilation factors and bronchospasm (FVC, FEV1) in the pre-test and post-test resulted in no significant difference among the active people (p≥0/05). Discussion and conclusion: Based on the results observed in this study, it appears that pulmonary indices in active individuals increased after aerobic test. The increase in this indicator in active people is due to increased volume and elasticity of the lungs as well. In other words, pulmonary index is affected by rib muscles. It is considered that progress over respiratory muscle strength and endurance has raised FEV1 in the active cases.

Keywords: aerobic active maximum, bronchospasm, pulmonary function, spirometer

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Authors: Ana Jelenkovic, Nevena Kardum, Vuk Stevanovic, Ivana Šarac, Kristina Dmitrovic, Stevan Stevanovic, Maria Glibetic

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Physical activity is well known for its beneficial health implications, however, excess oxygen consumption may impair oxidative status of the cell and affect membrane fatty acid (FA) composition. Polyphenols are well-established antioxidants, which can incorporate in cell membranes and protect them from oxidation. Therefore, our aim was to investigate how an 8-week aerobic training alters erythrocyte FA composition and activities of enzymes (superoxide dismutase, glutathione peroxidase and catalase), and to what extent polyphenol-rich Aronia juice (AJ) counteracts these potential alterations. We included 28 healthy women aged 19-29, with mean body mass index (BMI) of 21.2±2.7kg/m² and assigned them into three groups. The first group performed 1 hour of aerobic training three times per week (T); the second group trained in the same way and received 100 ml/day AJ as a part of their regular diet (TAJ), while the third group was the control one (C). Study analyses were performed at baseline and at the end of the intervention and included: anthropometric and biochemical measurements, determination of erythrocyte FA profile with gas-liquid chromatography and determination of enzymes’ activity with spectrophotometry. Statistical analyses were carried out with SPSS 20.0, with p < 0.05 considered as significant. The paired t-test revealed a significant decrease in the saturated FA content and in ω6/ω3 ratio in TAJ group. Furthermore, ω3 and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) content increased, as well as the percentage of polyunsaturated FA and unsaturation index, which clearly pointed out that AJ supplementation with aerobic training protected cellular membranes from lipid peroxidation. No significant changes were observed in the two other groups. The between-group comparisons (ANCOVA) confirmed the synergistic effect of AJ supplementation and physical activity: DHA and ω3 contents were much higher, while ω6/ω3 ratio was significantly lower in the TAJ group compared with C. We also found that after the 8 weeks period, participants in TAJ group had a higher unsaturation index and lower saturated FA concentration than subjects from T group, suggesting that AJ polyphenols might be involved in that particular pathway. We found no significant changes in enzymes’ activities apart from a significantly higher superoxide dismutase activity in T group compared with the other two groups. Our results imply that supplementation with polyphenol-rich AJ may prevent membrane lipids from peroxidation in healthy subjects with regular aerobic activity.

Keywords: Aronia juice, aerobic training, fatty acids, oxidative status

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Authors: Pello Alfonso-Muniozguren, Madeleine Bussemaker, Devendra Saroj, Judy Lee

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Wastewater treatment is becoming a worldwide concern due to new and tighter environmental regulations, and the increasing need for fresh water for the exponentially growing population. The meat industry has one of the highest consumption of water producing up to 10 times more polluted (BOD) wastewaters in comparison to domestic sewage. Therefore, suitable wastewater treatment methods are required to ensure the wastewater quality meet regulations before discharge. In the present study, a combined lab scale activated sludge-sonication system was used to treat pre-treated abattoir wastewater. A hydraulic retention time of 24 hours and a solid retention time of 13 days were used for the activated sludge process and using ultrasound as tertiary treatment. Different ultrasonic frequencies, powers and sonication times were applied to the samples and results were analysed for chemical oxygen demand (COD), biological oxygen demand (BOD), total suspended solids, pH, total coliforms and total viable counts. Additionally, both mechanical and chemical effects of ultrasound were quantified for organic matter removal (COD and BOD) and disinfection (microorganism inactivation) using different techniques such as aluminum foil pitting, flow cytometry, and KI dosimetry.

Keywords: abattoir wastewater, ultrasound, wastewater treatment, water disinfection

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Authors: Fatima Huda Hallak

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The current study aimed to evaluate the activity of bacterial insecticide Vertinic against the second star larvae of Trogoderma granarium (Everts) by four treatments: A, B, C, D, at seven concentrations: 0.001, 0.01, 0.1,1,10,100,1000 PPM. The mortality rate of larvae was 100% at concentrations 10 and 100 in treatments A and B after 24 hours and after 48 hours in treatment D at 1 PPM. The efficiency of treatment A was greater as compared to treatment B at all concentrations and all exposure times. The efficiency of treatment D was greater as compared to treatment C; for example, at 0.001, 0.01, 0.1, 1 PPM, after 120 hours, the Mortality rate of larve was 6.76, 13.33, 43.33, 100% in treatment D, which it was 0.00, 0.00, 23.33, 96.67%, respectively in the treatment C.

Keywords: bacterial insecticide, trogoderma granarium (everts), fourth star larvae, vertimic

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Authors: Wiem Daoud Ben Amor, Luis Martínez López, Hela Moalla Frikha

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Most of the multi-criteria group decision making (MCGDM) problems dealing with qualitative criteria require consideration of the large background of expert information. It is common that experts have different degrees of knowledge for giving their alternative assessments according to criteria. So, it seems logical that they use different evaluation scales to express their judgment, i.e., multi granular linguistic scales. In this context, we propose the extension of the classical additive ratio assessment (ARAS) method to the case of a hierarchical linguistics term for managing multi granular linguistic scales in uncertain contexts where uncertainty is modeled by means in linguistic information. The proposed approach is called the extended hierarchical linguistics-ARAS method (ARAS-ELH). Within the ARAS-ELH approach, the DM can diagnose the results (the ranking of the alternatives) in a decomposed style, i.e., not only at one level of the hierarchy but also at the intermediate ones. Also, the developed approach allows a feedback transformation i.e the collective final results of all experts able to be transformed at any level of the extended linguistic hierarchy that each expert has previously used. Therefore, the ARAS-ELH technique makes it easier for decision-makers to understand the results. Finally, An MCGDM case study is given to illustrate the proposed approach.

Keywords: additive ratio assessment, extended hierarchical linguistic, multi-criteria group decision making problems, multi granular linguistic contexts

Procedia PDF Downloads 187

Authors: N. Khomarloo, F. Mousazadegan, M. Latifi, N. Hemmatinejad

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Recently, the utilization of reusable surgical gowns in order to decrease costs, environmental protection and enhance surgeon’s comfort is considered. One of the concerns in applying this kind of medical protective clothing is reduction of their resistance to bacterial penetration especially in wet state, after repeated laundering and sterilizing process. The purpose of this study is to investigate the effect of the laundering and sterilizing process on the reusable surgical gown’s resistance against bacterial wet penetration. To this end, penetration of Staphylococcus aureus bacteria in wet state after 70 washing and sterilizing cycles was evaluated on the two single-layer and three-layer reusable gowns. The outcomes reveal that up to 20 laundering and sterilizing cycles, protective property of samples improves due to fabric shrinkage, after that because of the fabric’s construction opening, the bacterial penetration increase. However, the three-layer gown presents higher protective performance comparing to the single-layer one.

Keywords: laundry, porosity, reusable surgical gown, sterilization, wet bacterial penetration

Procedia PDF Downloads 257