Search results for: traditional water harvesting

Authors: Lina Liang, Kai Xu, Jing Zhang

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Purpose: Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is a major leading cause of visual impairment and blindness with no cure currently established. Cell replacement is discussed as a potential therapy for AMD. Besides intravitreal injection and subretinal injection, intravenous administration has been explored as an alternative route. This study is to observe the effect of BSYJ, a traditional Chinese medicine on the homing and differentiation of mesenchymal stem cells transplanted via tail vein injection in an age-related macular degeneration mouse model. Methods: Four-week-old C57BL/6J mice were injected with 40 mg/kg NaIO₃ to induce age-related macular degeneration model. At the second day after NaIO₃ injection, 1×10⁷ GFP labeled bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells (GFP-MSCs) were transplanted via tali vein injection into the experimental mice. Then the mice were randomly divided into two groups, gavaged with either BSYJ solution (BSYJ group, n=12) or distilled water (DW group, n=12). 12 age-matched healthy C57BL/6J mice were fed regularly as normal control. At day 7, day 14, and day 28 after treatment, retina flat mounting was used to detect the homing of mesenchymal stem cells at the retina. Double-labeling immunofluorescence was used to determine the differentiation of mesenchymal stem cells. Results: At 7, 14, 28 days after treatment, the numbers of GFP-MSCs detected by retina flatmount were 10.2 ± 2.5, 14.5 ± 3.4 and 18.7 ± 5.8, respectively in the distilled water group, while 15.7 ± 3.8, 32.3 ± 3.5 and 77.3 ± 6.4 in BSYJ group, the differences between the two groups were significant (p < 0.05). At 28 days after treatment, it was shown by double staining immunofluorescence that there were more GFP positive cells in the retina of BSYJ group than that of the DW group, but none of the cells expressed RPE specific genes such as RPE65 and CRALBP, or photoreceptor genes such as recoverin and rhodopsin either in BSYJ group or DW group. However, GFAP positive cells were found among the cells labeled with GFP, and the double labeling cells were much more in the BSYJ group than the distilled water group. Conclusion: BSYJ could promote homing of mesenchymal stem cells at the retina of age-related macular degeneration model mice induced by NaIO₃, and the differentiation towards to glial cells. Acknowledgement: National Natural Foundation of China (No: 81473736, 81674033,81973912).

Keywords: BSYJ, differentiation, homing, mesenchymal stem cells

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Authors: Avadhesh Yadav, Anunaya Saraswat

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An evacuated tube solar collector is experimentally studied for steam generation. When the solar radiation falls on evacuated tubes, this energy is absorbed by the tubes and transferred to water with natural conduction and convection. A natural circulation of water occurs due to the inclination in tubes and header. In this experimental study, the efficiency of collector has been calculated. The result shows that the collector attains the maximum efficiency of 46.26% during 14:00 to 15:00h. Steam has been generated for two hours from 13:30 to 15:30 h on a winter day. Maximum solar intensity and maximum ambient temperatures are 795W/m² and 19^oC respectively on this day.

Keywords: evacuated tube, solar collector, hot water, steam generation

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Authors: Pradeep Lamichhane

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Plasma-assisted nitrogen fixation is a process by which atomic nitrogen generated by plasma is converted into ammonia (NH₃) or related nitrogenous compounds. Nitrogen fixation is essential to plant because fixed inorganic nitrogen compounds are required to them for the biosynthesis of all nitrogen-containing organic compounds, such as amino acids and proteins, nucleoside triphosphates and nucleic acid. Most of our atmosphere is composed of nitrogen; however, the plant cannot absorb it directly from the air ambient. As a portion of the nitrogen cycle, nitrogen fixation fundamental for agriculture and the manufacture of fertilizer. In this study, plasma-assisted nitrogen fixation was performed by exposing a non-thermal atmospheric pressure nitrogen plasma generated a sinusoidal power supply (with an applied voltage of 10 kV and frequency of 33 kHz) on a water surface. Besides this, UV excitation of water molecules at the water interface was also done in order to disassociate water. Hydrogen and hydroxyl radical obtained from this UV photolysis electrochemically combine with nitrogen atom obtained from plasma. As a result of this, nitrogen fixation on plasma-activated water (PAW) significantly enhanced. The amount of nitrogen-based products like NOₓ and ammonia (NH₃) synthesized by this combined process of UV and plasma are 1.4 and 2.8 times higher than those obtained by plasma alone. In every 48 hours, 20 ml of plasma-activated water (pH≈3.15) for 10 minutes with moderate concentrations of NOₓ, NH₃ and hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂) was irrigated on each corn plant (Zea Mays). It was found that the PAW has shown a significant impact on seeds germination rate and improved seedling growth. The result obtained from this experiment suggested that crop yield could increase in a short duration. In the future, this experiment could open boundless opportunities in plasma agriculture to mobilize nitrogen because nitrite, nitrate, and ammonia are more suitable for plant uptake.

Keywords: plasma-assisted nitrogen fixation, nitrogen plasma, UV excitation of water, ammonia synthesis

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Authors: N. Matveev, A. Pervov

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Local utilities often face problems of local industrial wastes, storm water disposal due to existing strict regulations. For many local industries, the problem of wastewater treatment and discharge into surface reservoirs can’t be solved through the use of conventional biological treatment techniques. Current discharge standards require very strict removal of a number of impurities such as ammonia, nitrates, phosphate, etc. To reach this level of removal, expensive reagents and sorbents are used. The modern concept of rational water resources management requires the development of new efficient techniques that provide wastewater treatment and reuse. As RO membranes simultaneously reject all dissolved impurities such as BOD, TDS, ammonia, phosphates etc., they become very attractive for the direct treatment of wastewater without biological stage. To treat wastewater, specially designed membrane "open channel" modules are used that do not possess "dead areas" that cause fouling or require pretreatment. A solution to RO concentrate disposal problem is presented that consists of reducing of initial wastewater volume by 100 times. Concentrate is withdrawn from membrane unit as sludge moisture. The efficient use of membrane RO techniques is connected with a salt balance in water system. Thus, to provide high ecological efficiency of developed techniques, all components of water supply and wastewater discharge systems should be accounted for.

Keywords: reverse osmosis, stormwater treatment, open-channel module, wastewater reuse

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Authors: M. G. Tadesse, J. Yu, Y. Chen, L. Wang, V. Nierstrasz, C. Loghin

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Viscosity and surface tension are the fundamental rheological property of an ink for inkjet printing. In this work, we optimized the viscosity and surface tension of inkjet inks by varying the concentration of glycerol with water, PEDOT:PSS with glycerol and water, finally by adding the surfactant. The surface resistance of the sample was characterized by four-probe measurement principle. The change in volume of PEDOT:PSS in water, as well as the change in weight of glycerol in water has got a great influence on the viscosity on both temperature dependence and shear dependence behavior of the ink solution. The surface tension of the solution changed from 37 to 28 mN/m due to the addition of Triton. Varying the volume of PEDOT:PSS and the volume of glycerol in water has a great influence on the viscosity of the ink solution for inkjet printing. Viscosity drops from 12.5 to 9.5 mPa s with the addition of Triton at 25 oC. The PEDOT:PSS solution was found to be temperature dependence but not shear dependence as it is a Newtonian fluid. The sample was used to connect the light emitting diode (LED), and hence the electrical conductivity, with a surface resistance of 0.158 KΩ/square, was sufficient enough to give transfer current for LED lamp. The rheology of the inkjet ink is very critical for the successful droplet formation of the inkjet printing.

Keywords: shear rate, surface tension, surfactant, viscosity

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Authors: Marijn Tangelder, Ingeborg Mulder, Jeroen Wijsman, John Janssen, Tom Ysebaert

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The delta works in the Southwest Netherlands drastically changed the estuarine nature of this area. The Grevelingen estuary was dammed off and became a lake in 1971. Since 1978 a connection with the North Sea exists to keep the lake saline but management of the sluices varied over time. Our research of several decades of monitoring data shows that water management practices lead to drastic changes in water quality and consequent ecological shifts in benthic fauna, fish, and bird species. Benthic biomass, dominated by molluscs, showed major changes with an important role for invasive species. Fish migration and, therefore, fish stock in the lake changed with recently smaller fish species and lower biomass values, with consequences for fish eating birds. Implications are made towards future management to re-introduce micro-tide in connection with the North Sea to improve water quality and the ecological status of the lake, as well as consequences for the bordering Natura 2000 terrestrial habitats, including rare dune vegetations, are discussed.

Keywords: ecosystem study, Grevelingen, Natura 2000, water management, water quality

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Authors: Syed Ahzam Tariq, Atharva Modi

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This paper presents a probabilistic analysis of the safety of water tube boilers using fault tree analysis (FTA). A fault tree has been constructed by considering all possible areas where a malfunction could lead to a boiler accident. Boiler accidents are relatively rare, causing a scarcity of data. The fuzzy approach is employed to perform a quantitative analysis, wherein theories of fuzzy logic are employed in conjunction with expert elicitation to calculate failure probabilities. The Fuzzy Fault Tree Analysis (FFTA) provides a scientific and contingent method to forecast and prevent accidents.

Keywords: fault tree analysis water tube boiler, fuzzy probability score, failure probability

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Authors: Alfons Aziz Asaad Hozain

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The goal of sustainable architecture is to design buildings that have the least negative impact on the environment and provide better conditions for people. What forms of development enhance the area? This question was asked at the Center for the Study of Spatial Development and Building Forms in Cambridge in the late 1960s. This has resulted in many influential articles that have had a profound impact on the practice of urban planning. This article focuses on the sustainability outcomes caused by the climatic conditions of traditional Iranian architecture in hot and dry regions. Since people spend a lot of time at home, it is very important that these homes meet their physical and spiritual needs as well as the cultural and religious aspects of their lifestyle. In a country as large as Iran with different climates, traditional builders have put forward a number of logical solutions to ensure human comfort. With these solutions, the environmental problems of the have long been solved. Taking into account the experiences of traditional architecture in Iran's hot and dry climate, sustainable architecture can be achieved.

Keywords: sustainable development, human rights, the right to development, the human rights-based approach to development, environmental rights, economic development, social sustainability human rights protection, human rights violations, workers’ rights, justice, security

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Authors: Mehtap Çalışkan, Nilüfer Yıldız Varan, Volkan Kaplan

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New orientations have emerged in the textile sector as a result of increasing global competition and environmental problems. Under the scope of new understandings, it is required to bring forward multi-functional, simple and environmentally friendly methods that will meet tight economic and ecological demands of today. Plasma technology has become a significant alternative in this sense. This technology may provide great advantages in case it is developed, however, it does not receive adequate consideration. In this study, plasma treatment was applied by using glow discharge plasma system to 100% polyethylene terephthalate (PET) and 95% PET/5% elastane fabrics and then the effects of plasma polymerization on fabric surface was tested and analyzed using water and oil repellent finishes.

Keywords: plasma, polyester, elastane, water repellency, oil repellency

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Authors: Mitra Abtahi, Esmat Nasseri, Morteza Abodllahi

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Introduction: Adequate hydration is necessary for proper physical and mental function. The aim of this study is to determine the consumption of water and all other beverages in children (8-13 years) and adolescents (14-17 years) in Tehran metropolitan city of Iran. Materials and Methods: In this cross-sectional study, 455 children (8-13 years) and 334 adolescents (14-17 years) were retrieved from north, center, and south of Tehran (18 schools). Instrument for data collection consisted of a “demographic and general health” questionnaire and a “7-day fluid record”. Data analyses were performed with SPSS 16 software. Results: The mean total consumption of fluids in school children was 1302 ± 500.6 ml/day. The highest mean intakes were observed for water (666 ± 398 ml/day), followed by milk (239 ± 183 ml/day), regular soft beverages (RSB) (188 ± 148 ml/day), and juices (60 ± 74 ml/day). Water, hot drinks (mainly tea) and soft drinks intake was significantly more in boys than girls. A significantly lower intake of milk and a higher intake of RSB and hot beverages (mainly tea) have been seen among adolescents compared to children. Conclusion: The most important finding is that mean fluid intake of children and adolescents does not meet international adequate intake references for water and fluids. This finding may suggest the necessity of development of the local references. To improve fluid intake habits of children and adolescents, relevant policy making and actions are warranted.

Keywords: adolescents, beverages, children, water

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Authors: Muhammad Zaman, Guohua Fang, Muhammad Saifullah,

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The presented study emphasize at an optimal model to compare past and future optimal hydropower generation. In order to get maximum benefits from the Xin’anjiang hydropower station a model is developed. A Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO) has purposed and past and future water flow is used to get the maximum benefits from future water resources in this study. The results revealed that the future hydropower generation is more than the past generation. This paper gives us idea that what could we get in the past using optimal method of electricity generation and what can we get in the future using this technique.

Keywords: PSO, future water resources, optimization, Xin’anjiang,

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Authors: D. S. Jaya, G. P. Deepthi

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Groundwater is vital to the livelihoods and health of the majority of the people since it provides almost the entire water resource for domestic, agricultural and industrial uses. Groundwater quality comprises the physical, chemical, and bacteriological qualities. The present investigation was carried out to determine the physicochemical and bacteriological quality of the ground water sources in the residential areas of Karakulam Grama Panchayath in Thiruvananthapuram district, Kerala state in India. Karakulam is located in the eastern suburbs of Thiruvananthapuram city. The major drinking water source of the residents in the study area are wells. The present study aims to assess the portability and irrigational suitability of groundwater in the study area. The water samples were collected from randomly selected dug wells and bore wells in the study area during post monsoon and pre-monsoon seasons of the year 2014 after a preliminary field survey. The physical, chemical and bacteriological parameters of the water samples were analysed following standard procedures. The concentration of heavy metals (Cd, Pb, and Mn) in the acid digested water samples were determined by using an Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometer. The results showed that the pH of well water samples ranged from acidic to the alkaline level. In the majority of well water samples ( > 54%) the iron and magnesium content were found high in both the seasons studied, and the values were above the permissible limits of WHO drinking water quality standards. Bacteriological analyses showed that 63% of the wells were contaminated with total coliforms in both the seasons studied. Irrigational suitability of groundwater was assessed by determining the chemical indices like Sodium Percentage (%Na), Sodium Adsorption Ratio (SAR), Residual Sodium Carbonate (RSC), Permeability Index (PI), and the results indicate that the well water in the study area is good for irrigation purposes. Therefore, the study reveals the degradation of drinking water quality groundwater sources in Karakulam Grama Panchayath in Thiruvananthapuram District, Kerala in terms of its chemical and bacteriological characteristics and is not potable without proper treatment. In the study, more than 1/3rd of the wells tested were positive for total coliforms, and the bacterial contamination may pose threats to public health. The study recommends the need for periodic well water quality monitoring in the study area and to conduct awareness programs among the residents.

Keywords: bacteriological, groundwater, irrigational suitability, physicochemical, portability

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Authors: Mehdi Khaki, Ehsan Forootan, Joseph Awange, Michael Kuhn

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Terrestrial water storage, as a source of freshwater, plays an important role in human lives. Hydrological models offer important tools for simulating and predicting water storages at global and regional scales. However, their comparisons with 'reality' are imperfect mainly due to a high level of uncertainty in input data and limitations in accounting for all complex water cycle processes, uncertainties of (unknown) empirical model parameters, as well as the absence of high resolution (both spatially and temporally) data. Data assimilation can mitigate this drawback by incorporating new sets of observations into models. In this effort, we use multi-mission satellite-derived remotely sensed observations to improve the performance of World-Wide Water Resources Assessment system (W3RA) hydrological model for estimating terrestrial water storages. For this purpose, we assimilate total water storage (TWS) data from the Gravity Recovery And Climate Experiment (GRACE) and surface soil moisture data from the Advanced Microwave Scanning Radiometer for the Earth Observing System (AMSR-E) into W3RA. This is done to (i) improve model estimations of water stored in ground and soil moisture, and (ii) assess the impacts of each satellite of data (from GRACE and AMSR-E) and their combination on the final terrestrial water storage estimations. These data are assimilated into W3RA using the Ensemble Square-Root Filter (EnSRF) filtering technique over Mississippi Basin (the United States) and Murray-Darling Basin (Australia) between 2002 and 2013. In order to evaluate the results, independent ground-based groundwater and soil moisture measurements within each basin are used.

Keywords: data assimilation, GRACE, AMSR-E, hydrological model, EnSRF

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Authors: Hadi Shamoradifar, Behzad Teimuri, Parviz Parvaresh, Saeed Mohammadi

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One of the experimental facilities of the heavy water research reactor is the central test loop (C.T.L). It is located along the central axial line of the vessel, and therefore will highly affect the neutronic parameters of the reactor, so from the neutronics point of view, C.T.L is the most important facility. It is mainly designed for fuel testing, thought other applications such as radioisotope production and neutron activation, can be imagine for it. All of the simulations were performed by MCNPX2.6. As a first step towards C.T.L analysis, the effect of D2O-filled, H2O-filled, and He-filled C.T.L on the effective multiplication factor (Keff.), have been evaluated. According to results, H2O-filled C.T.L has a higher thermal neutron, while He-filled C.T.L includes more resonance neutrons. In the next step thermal and total axial neutron fluxes, were calculated and used as the comparison parameters. The core without C.T.L (C.T.L replaced by heavy water) is selected as the reference case, and the effect of all other cases is calculated according to that.

Keywords: heavy water reactor, neutronic calculations, central test loop, neutron activation

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Authors: M. R. Aziz, W. Kuntjoro, N. V. David

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This paper presents the ballistic terminal study of the non-filled and water-filled aluminum tank. The objective was to determine the failure stages for both cases. The tank was impacted by fragment simulating projectile (FSP) with 260 m/s for non-filled and 972 m/s for water-filled. The aluminum tank was 3 mm thick, 150 mm wide and 750 mm long. The ends of the tank were closed with two polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) windows. The test was conducted at the Science and Technology Research Institute for Defense (STRIDE) Batu Arang, Selangor, Malaysia. The results showed four main stages for non-filled tank, which were first contact between FSP and the tank, partially perforated, fully perforated with FSP and plug still intact and lastly fully perforated with FSP and plug separated. Meanwhile, for the water-filled tank, there were seven main stages, which were first contact between FSP and the tank, partial perforation, full perforation, drag phase, cavity phase, bounce wave event and the collapse of the cavity.

Keywords: fragment simulating projectile, high speed camera, tensile test, terminal ballistic

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Authors: Rochelle Alviz, Kirk Johnson

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This study explores the changing nature of gender roles in two traditional island societies. The research focuses particularly on the settler populations within each community (the Filipinos in Guam and the Javanese in Bali). The research seeks to understand the influence of both the forces of globalization and the dynamics of competing cultures on gender roles. To achieve this, a qualitative research design is used, employing in-depth interviews with individuals from both communities and field notes from participant observation. The study finds that globalization and competing cultural norms have influenced traditional gender roles and expectations in two primary areas of social life: the family and the economy. The importance of these two areas of social life to both communities has led to changes and adaptations in gender roles. In the family context, individuals reconcile their traditional gender roles from their country of origin with the dominant or indigenous gender roles of their new place of residence. In the economic context, the study finds that gender roles influence economic participation, including the types of jobs individuals pursue based on their gender roles. The results of the study provide valuable insights into the complexities and nuances of gender roles and the different factors that influence their evolution and adaptation over time. The research also highlights the influence of globalization on traditional societies and settler populations and the ways in which individuals navigate the competing cultural norms and expectations surrounding gender roles. The research contributes to a better understanding of the interplay between culture, globalization, and gender roles and the implications of these changes for individuals and communities.

Keywords: gender roles, culture, settler communities, family, economy, Guam, Bali, globalization

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Authors: Antonella Di Sotto, Cinzia Ingallina, Caterina Fraschetti, Simone Circi, Marcello Locatelli, Simone Carradori, Gabriela Mazzanti, Luisa Mannina, Silvia Di Giacomo

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Cannabis sativa L. is one of the oldest cultivated plant species known not only for its voluptuous use but also for the wide application in food, textile, and therapeutic industries. Recently, the progress of biotechnologies applied to medicinal plants has allowed to produce different hemp varieties with low content of psychotropic phytoconstituents (tetrahydrocannabinol < 0.2% w/v), thus leading to a renewed industrial and therapeutic interest for this plant. In this context, in order to discover new potential remedies of pharmaceutical and/or nutraceutical interest, the chemopreventive properties of different organic and hydroalcoholic extracts, obtained from the inflorescences of C. sativa L. var. USO31, collected in June and September harvesting, were assessed. Particularly, the antimutagenic activity towards the oxidative DNA-damage induced by tert-butyl hydroperoxide (t-BOOH) was evaluated, and the DPPH (2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl) and ABTS (2,2'-azino-bis-3-ethylbenzthiazoline-6-sulphonic acid) radical scavenging power of the samples were assessed as possible mechanisms of antimutagenicity. Furthermore, the ability of the extracts to inhibit the glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD), whose overexpression has been found to play a critical role in neoplastic transformation and tumor progression, has been studied as a possible chemopreventive strategy. A careful phytochemical characterization of the extracts for phenolic and terpenoid composition has been obtained by high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) methods. Under our experimental condition, all the extracts were found able to interfere with the tBOOH-induced mutagenicity in WP2uvrAR strain, although with different potency and effectiveness. The organic extracts from both the harvesting periods were found to be the main effective antimutagenic samples, reaching about a 55% inhibition of the tBOOH-mutagenicity at the highest concentration tested (250 μg/ml). All the extracts exhibited radical scavenger activity against DPPH and ABTS radicals, with a higher potency of the hydroalcoholic samples. The organic extracts were also able to inhibit the G6PD enzyme, being the samples from September harvesting the highly potent (about 50% inhibition respect to the vehicle). At the phytochemical analysis, all the extracts resulted to contain both polar and apolar phenolic compounds. The HPLC analysis revealed the presence of catechin and rutin as the major constituents of the hydroalcoholic extracts, with lower levels of quercetin and ferulic acid. The monoterpene carvacrol was found to be an ubiquitarian constituent. At GC-MS analysis, different terpenoids, among which caryophyllene sesquiterpenes, were identified. This evidence suggests a possible role of both polyphenols and terpenoids in the chemopreventive properties of the extracts from the inflorescences of C. sativa var. USO31. According to the literature, carvacrol and caryophyllene sesquiterpenes can contribute to the strong antimutagenicity although the role of all the hemp phytocomplex cannot be excluded. In conclusion, present results highlight a possible interest for the inflorescences of C. sativa var. USO31 as source of bioactive molecules and stimulate further studies in order to characterize its possible application for nutraceutical and pharmaceutical purposes.

Keywords: antimutagenicity, glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase, hemp inflorescences, nutraceuticals, sesquiterpenes

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Authors: Islam Zeb

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Water of poor quality has a potential of probable contamination and a way to spread pollutant in the field and surrounding environment. A number of comprehensive reviews articles have been published which highlight irrigation water as a source of pathogenic microorganisms and heavy metals toxicity that leads to chronic diseases in human. Here a study was plan to determine the microbial status of irrigation water collected from various location of district Swat in various months. The analyses were carried out at Environmental Horticulture Laboratory, Department of Horticulture, The University of Agriculture Peshawar, during the year 2018 – 19. The experiment was laid out in Randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD) with two factors and three replicates. Factor A consist of different locations, and factor B represent various months. The results of microbial status for various locations in irrigation water showed the highest value for Total Bacterial Count, Enterobacteriacea, E. coli, Salmonella, and Listeria (9.05, 8.54, 6.01, 5.84, and 5.03 log cfu L-1 respectively) for samples collected from mingora location, whereas the lowest values for Total Bacterial Count, Enterobacteriacea, E. coli, Salmonella and Listeria (6.70, 6.38, 4.47, 4.42 and 3.77 log cfu L-1 respectively) were observed for matta location. Data for various months showed maximum Total Bacterial Count, Enterobacteriacea, E. coli, Salmonella, and Listeria (12.01, 11.70, 8.46, 8.41, and 6.88 log cfu L-1, respectively) were noted for the irrigation water samples collected in May/June whereas the lowest range for Total Bacterial Count, Enterobacteriacea, E. coli, Salmonella and Listeria (4.41, 4.08, 2.61, 2.55 and 3.39 log cfu L-1 respectively) were observed in Jan/Feb. A significant interaction was found for all the studied parameters it was concluded that maximum bacterial groups were recorded in the months of May/June from Mingora location, it might be due to favorable weather condition.

Keywords: contamination, irrigation water, microbes, SWAT, various months

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Authors: Salam Labidi, Sonia Machraoui, Souha Gharbi

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Radium isotopes (226Ra, 228Ra) and uranium isotopes (234U, 238U) activity concentrations were determined in most popular Tunisian bottled mineral waters samples. Activity concentrations of uranium were studied by radiochemical separation procedures followed by alpha spectrometry and that of radium isotopes by gamma-ray spectrometry. The activity concentrations of 238U, 234U, 226Ra and 228Ra in water samples varied in range 3.3 - 22.5 mBq.L−1, 4.0 - 34.2 mBq L−1, 2.0 - 67.0 mBq L−1 and 2.0 - 30.2 mBq L−1, respectively. These values are comparable with those reported for many other countries in the world for different types of water. Based on the activity concentration results obtained in this study, the estimated annual ingestion dose rates for three different age groups (babies, children and adults) due to the ingestion of radium and uranium isotopes through drinking water are lower than the limit of intake prescribed by WHO. The annual doses exceed the recommended value of 0.1 mSv y-1 in one case for babies.

Keywords: mineral water, natural radioactivity, radiation dose, radium, uranium

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Authors: Vasile Caunii, Andreea D. Serban, Mihaela Ivancia

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The paper presents a new approach in terms of the circular economy of technologies for feeding and aeration of accumulations and water basins for fish farming and aquaculture. Because fish is and will be one of the main foods on the planet, the use of bio-eco-technologies is a priority for all producers. The technologies proposed in the paper want to reduce by a substantial percentage the costs of operation of ponds and water accumulation, using non-polluting technologies with minimal impact on the environment. The paper proposes two innovative, intelligent systems, fully automated that use a common platform, completely eco-friendly. One system is intended to aerate the water of the fish pond, and the second is intended to feed the fish by dispersing an optimal amount of fodder, depending on population size, age and habits. Both systems use a floating platform, regenerative energy sources, are equipped with intelligent and innovative systems, and in addition to fully automated operation, significantly reduce the costs of aerating water accumulations (natural or artificial) and feeding fish. The intelligent system used for feeding, in addition, to reduce operating costs, optimizes the amount of food, thus preventing water pollution and the development of bacteria, microorganisms. The advantages of the systems are: increasing the yield of fish production, these are green installations, with zero pollutant emissions, can be arranged anywhere on the water surface, depending on the user's needs, can operate autonomously or remotely controlled, if there is a component failure, the system provides the operator with accurate data on the issue, significantly reducing maintenance costs, transmit data about the water physical and chemical parameters.

Keywords: bio-eco-technologies, economy, environment, fish

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Authors: Jae-Yeong Choi, Gyu-Mok Jeon, Jong-Chun Park, Yong-Jin Cho, Seok-Tae Yoon

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When air flow is injected into water, bubbles are formed in various types inside the water pool along with the air flow rate. The bubbles are floated in equilibrium with forces such as buoyancy, surface tension and shear force. Single bubble generated at low flow rate maintains shape, but bubbles with high flow rate break up to make mixing and turbulence. In addition to this phenomenon, as the hot air bubbles are injected into the water, heat affects the interface of phases. Therefore, the main scope of the present work reveals how to proceed heat transfer between water and hot air bubbles injected into water. In the present study, a series of CFD simulation for the heat transfer of hot bubbles injected through a nozzle near the bottom in a cylindrical water column are performed using a commercial CFD software, STAR-CCM+. The governing equations for incompressible and viscous flow are the continuous and the RaNS (Reynolds- averaged Navier-Stokes) equations and discretized by the FVM (Finite Volume Method) manner. For solving multi-phase flow, the Eulerian multiphase model is employed and the interface is defined by VOF (Volume-of-Fluid) technique. As a turbulence model, the SST k-w model considering the buoyancy effects is introduced. For spatial differencing the 3th-order MUSCL scheme is adopted and the 2nd-order implicit scheme for time integration. As the results, the dynamic behavior of the rising hot bubbles with the flow rate injected and regarding heat transfer mechanism are discussed based on the simulation results.

Keywords: heat transfer, hot bubble injection, eulerian multiphase model, flow rate, CFD (Computational Fluid Dynamics)

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Authors: O. M. Couto Junior, I. Matos, I. M. Fonseca, P. A. Arroyo, E. A. Silva, M. A. S. D. Barros

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This study was the adsorption of paracetamol from aqueous solutions on fixed beds of activated carbon from babassy coconut shell. Several operation conditions on the shape of breakthrough curves were investigated and proposed model is successfully validated with the literature data and obtained experimental data. The initial paracetamol concentration increases from 20 to 50 mg.L-1, and the break point time decreases, tb, from 18.00 to 10.50 hours. The fraction of unused bed length, HUNB, at break-through point is obtained in the range of 1.62 to 2.81 for 20 to 50 mg.L-1 of initial paracetamol concentration. The presence of Ca+2 and Mg+2 are responsible for increasing the hardness of the water, affects significantly the adsorption kinetics, and lower removal efficiency by adsorption of paracetamol on activated carbons. The axial dispersion coefficients, DL, was constants for concentrated feed solution, but this parameter has different values for deionized and hardness water. The mass transfer coefficient, Ks, was increasing with concentrated feed solution.

Keywords: paracetamol, adsorption, water hardness, activated carbon.

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Authors: Ratul Das, Udit Narayan Das

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Surface imperviousness in urban area brings significant changes in storm water drainage systems and some recent studies reveals that the impervious surfaces that passes the storm water runoff directly to drainage systems through storm water collection systems, called directly connected impervious area (DCIA) is an effective parameter rather than total impervious areas (TIA) for computation of surface runoff. In the present study, extension of DCIA and TIA were computed for a small sub-urban area of Agartala, the capital of state Tripura. Total impervious surfaces covering the study area were identified on the existing storm water drainage map from landuse map of the study area in association with field assessments. Also, DCIA assessed through field survey were compared to DCIA computed by empirical relationships provided by other investigators. For the assessment of DCIA in the study area two methods were adopted. First, partitioning the study area into four drainage sub-zones based on average basin slope and laying of existing storm water drainage systems. In the second method, the entire study area was divided into small grids. Each grid or parcel comprised of 20m× 20m area. Total impervious surfaces were delineated from landuse map in association with on-site assessments for efficient determination of DCIA within each sub-area and grid. There was a wide variation in percent connectivity of TIA across each sub-drainage zone and grid. In the present study, total impervious area comprises 36.23% of the study area, in which 21.85% of the total study area is connected to storm water collection systems. Total pervious area (TPA) and others comprise 53.20% and 10.56% of the total area, respectively. TIA recorded by field assessment (36.23%) was considerably higher than that calculated from the available land use map (22%). From the analysis of recoded data, it is observed that the average percentage of connectivity (% DCIA with respect to TIA) is 60.31 %. The analysis also reveals that the observed DCIA lies below the line of optimal impervious surface connectivity for a sub-urban area provided by other investigators and which indicate the probable reason of water logging conditions in many parts of the study area during monsoon period.

Keywords: Drainage, imperviousness, runoff, storm water.

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Authors: Shannon Melideo

Abstract:

Post-secondary schools that provide specialized instruction for college students with special needs have been in existence for some time in the United States of America. Whether students experience learning disabilities, visual impairments, physical limitations, Autism Spectrum Disorders or any other issue that impacts their learning are able to attend universities that intentionally cater to their needs. While this selection of post-secondary education may be preferred by some students, other have sought a different experience. Over the last ten years, the number of students with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) attending traditional universities in the United States of America has increased significantly. Students with ASD tend to select smaller, private institutions that appear to offer more personal attention and services. This paper will examine how traditional American universities are preparing for this relatively new group of students in their college classrooms. This paper will provide a brief historical timeline of access to university instruction for students with Autism Spectrum Disorders, and how and if students with ASD are received in colleges around the globe, and best research supported practices for success.

Keywords: autism spectrum disorders, access to learning, university instruction, accommodations

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Authors: Seydou Drabo

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This paper examines how traditional contraceptives and abortion practices challenges the use of modern contraceptives in Burkina Faso. It demonstrates how fears and ‘superstitions’ interact with knowledge about modern contraceptives methods to determine use in a context where other way of controlling fertility (traditional contraceptives, abortion) are available to women in the public, private and traditional health sectors. Furthermore, these issues come at the time when Burkina Faso is among countries with a high fertility rate which (6.0 in 2010) and a very low used of contraceptives as only 16% of married women of childbearing age were using a contraceptive method in 2010. The country also has a young population since 33 % of the population is between 10-24 years old and this number is expected to increase by 2050, generating fears that a growing population of youth will put excessive pressure on available resources, including access to education, health services, and employment. Despite over two decades of dedicated policy attention, 24% of women of reproductive age (15-49) was estimated to have an unmet need for contraception in 2010. This paper draws on ethnographic fieldwork conducted since march 2016 (The research is still in progress) in Burkina Faso. Data were collected from 25 women (users and non-users of modern contraceptives and /or traditional contraceptives, post abortion care patients), 4 street drugs vendors and 3 traditional healers through formal and informal interviews, as well as direct observation. The findings show that a variety of contraceptives methods and abortion drugs or methods, both traditional and modern circulate and are available to women. Traditional contraceptives called African contraceptives by some of our participants refer to several birth control method including plants decoction, magical ring, waist necklace, a ritual done with a mixture of lay coming from termite mound and menses. Abortion is a practice that is done in secret through the use of abortion drugs or through intra uterine manoeuvres. Modern contraceptives include Oral contraceptive, implants, injectable. Stereotypes about modern contraceptives, having regular menstrual cycles and adopt of natural birth control methods, bad experience with modern contraceptives methods, the side effect of modern contraceptives, irregularity of sexual activities and the availability of emergency contraceptives are among factors that limit their use among women. In addition, a negative perception is built around modern contraceptives seen as the drug of ‘white people’. In general, the information on these drugs circulates in women’s social network (first line of information on contraceptive). Some women prefer using what they call African contraceptives or inducing an abortion over modern contraceptives because of their side effect. Furthermore, the findings show that women practices and attitudes in controlling birth varies throughout different phases of their lives. Beyond global discourses and technical solution, the issue of Family planning is all about social practices.

Keywords: abortion, Burkina Faso, contraception, culture, women

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Authors: Parisa Amouzgar, Chan Eng Seng, Babak Salamatinia

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Pharmaceutical products are being increasingly detected in the environment. However, conventional treatment systems do not provide an adequate treatment for pharmaceutical drug elimination and still there is not a regulated standard for their limitation in water. Since decades before, pharmaceuticals have been in the water but only recently, their levels in the environment have been recognized and quantified as potentially hazardous to ecosystems. In this study chitosan with a bio-based NAC (Ct-NAC) were made as beads with extrusion dripping method and investigated for acetaminophen removal from water. The effects of beading parameters such as flow rate in dripping, the distance from dipping tip to the solution surface, concentration of chitosan and percentage of NAC were analyzed to find the optimum condition. Based on the results, the overall adsorption rate and removal efficiency increased during the time till the equilibrium rate which was 80% removal of acetaminophen. The maximum adsorption belonged to the beads with 1.75% chitosan, 60% NAC, flow-rate of 1.5 ml/min while the distance of dripping was 22.5 cm.

Keywords: pharmaceuticals, water treatment, chitosan nano activated carbon beads, Acetaminophen

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Authors: Thammarak Srimarut, Witthaya Mekhum

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This study analysed and developed a model for monk’s food bowl production on occupational health safety and environment at work for the encouragement of Rattanakosin local wisdom at Banbart Community. The process of blowpipe welding was necessary to produce the bowl which was very dangerous or 93.59% risk. After the employment of new sitting posture, the work risk was lower 48.41% or moderate risk. When considering in details, it was found that: 1) the traditional sitting posture could create work risk at 88.89% while the new sitting posture could create the work risk at 58.86%. 2) About the environmental pollution, with the traditional sitting posture, workers exposed to the polluted fume from welding at 61.11% while with the new sitting posture workers exposed to the polluted fume from welding at 40.47%. 3) On accidental risk, with the traditional sitting posture, workers exposed to the accident from welding at 94.44% while with the new sitting posture workers exposed to the accident from welding at 62.54%.

Keywords: occupational health safety, environment at work, Monk’s food bowl, machine intelligence

Procedia PDF Downloads 425

Authors: A. Bahmanpour, I. Eames, C. Klettner, A. Dimakopoulos

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We develop a new set of diagnostic tools to analyze inundation into a model district using three-dimensional CFD simulations, with a view to generating a database against which to test simpler models. A three-dimensional model of Oregon city with different-sized groups of building next to the coastline is used to run calculations of the movement of a long period wave on the shore. The initial and boundary conditions of the off-shore water are set using a nonlinear inverse method based on Eulerian spatial information matching experimental Eulerian time series measurements of water height. The water movement is followed in time, and this enables the pressure distribution on every surface of each building to be followed in a temporal manner. The three-dimensional numerical data set is validated against published experimental work. In the first instance, we use the dataset as a basis to understand the success of reduced models - including 2D shallow water model and reduced 1D models - to predict water heights, flow velocity and forces. This is because models based on the shallow water equations are known to underestimate drag forces after the initial surge of water. The second component is to identify critical flow features, such as hydraulic jumps and choked states, which are flow regions where dissipation occurs and drag forces are large. Finally, we describe how future tsunami inundation models should be modified to account for the complex effects of buildings through drag and blocking.Financial support from UCL and HR Wallingford is greatly appreciated. The authors would like to thank Professor Daniel Cox and Dr. Hyoungsu Park for providing the data on the Seaside Oregon experiment.

Keywords: computational fluid dynamics, extreme events, loading, tsunami

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Authors: Iga Maliga

Abstract:

As developing country, Indonesia, retreatment for greywater is an important factor that guaranteeing water sustainability? But, its still not familiar in Indonesian society. Because they still use their old habit for wasting the water without retreatment. Differently, with industry wastewater, effect of domestic wastewater is not directly looked with naked eyes. Domestic wastewater that not gets treatment directly can affect pollution in water body or river. Its affected by accumulation many pollutants that include on water. This paper is trying to analyze the challenges and advantages on greywater treatment system based on Constructed Wetlands (CWs) system in Bandung, one of the biggest cities in Indonesia. Aside that, this paper also is trying to analyze sustainability aspects. There is economic, social and of course environment with two methods. The first, study literature is used to see the advantages and challenges that faced by Indonesia when CWs are applied. Secondly, quantitative method is used to get the society perception about retreatment of greywater. Then, it will get a conclusion that this technique not only good in theoretically but also practically.

Keywords: greywater, constructed wetlands, advantages, challenges, Bandung, sustainability analysis

Procedia PDF Downloads 258

Authors: S. Chuenchooklin

Abstract:

This research was conducted in the Lower Ping River Basin downstream of the Bhumibol Dam and the Lower Wang River Basin in Tak Province, Thailand. Most of the tributary streams of the Ping can be considered as ungauged catchments. There are 10- pumping station installation at both river banks of the Ping in Tak Province. Recently, most of them could not fully operate due to the water amount in the river below the level that would be pumping, even though included water from the natural river and released flow from the Bhumibol Dam. The aim of this research was to increase the performance of those pumping stations using weir projects in the Ping. Therefore, the river analysis system model (HEC-RAS) was applied to study the hydraulic behavior of water surface profiles in the Ping River with both cases of existing conditions and proposed weirs during the violent flood in 2011 and severe drought in 2013. Moreover, the hydrologic modeling system (HMS) was applied to simulate lateral streamflow hydrograph from ungauged catchments of the Ping. The results of HEC-RAS model calibration with existing conditions in 2011 showed best trial roughness coefficient for the main channel of 0.026. The simulated water surface levels fitted to observation data with R2 of 0.8175. The model was applied to 3 proposed cascade weirs with 2.35 m in height and found surcharge water level only 0.27 m higher than the existing condition in 2011. Moreover, those weirs could maintain river water levels and increase of those pumping performances during less river flow in 2013.

Keywords: HEC-RAS, HMS, pumping stations, cascade weirs

Procedia PDF Downloads 373