Search results for: remediation of soil and water

Authors: Jaharlal Debbarma

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The ecological crisis has become a threat to earth’s well-being. Man’s ambitious desire of wealth, pleasure, fame, longevity and happiness has extracted natural resources so vastly that it is unable to sustain a healthy life. Man’s greed for wealth and power has caused the setting up of vast factories which further created the problem of air, water and noise pollution, which have adversely affected both fauna and flora.It is no secret that man uses his inherent powers of reason, intelligence and creativity to change his environment for his advantage. But man is not aware that the moral force he himself creates brings about corresponding changes in his environment to his weal or woe whether he likes it or not. As we are facing the global warming and the nature’s gift such as air and water has been so drastically polluted with disastrous consequences that man seek for a ways and means to overcome all this pollution problem as his health and life sustainability has been threaten and that is where man try to question about the moral ethics and value.It is where Buddhist philosophy has been emphasized deeply which gives us hope for overcoming this entire problem as Buddha himself emphasized in eradicating human suffering and Buddhism is the strongest form of humanism we have. It helps us to learn to live with responsibility, compassion, and loving kindness.It teaches us to be mindful in our action and thought as the environment unites every human being. If we fail to save it we will perish. If we can rise to meet the need to all which ecology binds us - humans, other species, other everything will survive together.My paper will look into the theory of Dependent Origination (Pratītyasamutpāda), Buddhist understanding of suffering (collective suffering), and Non-violence (Ahimsa) and an effort will be made to provide a new vision to Buddhist ecological perspective. The above Buddhist philosophy will be applied to ethical values and belief systems of modern society. The challenge will be substantially to transform the modern individualistic and consumeristic values. The stress will be made on the interconnectedness of the nature and the relation between human and planetary sustainability. In a way environmental crisis will be referred to “spiritual crisis” as A. Gore (1992) has pointed out. The paper will also give important to global consciousness, as well as to self-actualization and self-fulfillment. In the words of Melvin McLeod “Only when we combine environmentalism with spiritual practice, will we find the tools to make the profound personal transformations needed to address the planetary crisis?”

Keywords: dependent arising, collective ecological suffering, remediation, Buddhist approach

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Authors: Rahul Patel

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Ahmedabad, a city located in western India, is experiencing rapid growth due to urbanization and industrialization. It is projected to become a metropolitan city in the near future, resulting in various construction activities. Soil testing is necessary before construction can commence, requiring construction companies and contractors to periodically conduct soil testing. The focus of this study is on the process of creating a spatial database that is digitally formatted and integrated with geotechnical data and a Geographic Information System (GIS). Building a comprehensive geotechnical (Geo)-database involves three steps: collecting borehole data from reputable sources, verifying the accuracy and redundancy of the data, and standardizing and organizing the geotechnical information for integration into the database. Once the database is complete, it is integrated with GIS, allowing users to visualize, analyze, and interpret geotechnical information spatially. Using a Topographic to Raster interpolation process in GIS, estimated values are assigned to all locations based on sampled geotechnical data values. The study area was contoured for SPT N-Values, Soil Classification, Φ-Values, and Bearing Capacity (T/m2). Various interpolation techniques were cross-validated to ensure information accuracy. This GIS map enables the calculation of SPT N-Values, Φ-Values, and bearing capacities for different footing widths and various depths. This study highlights the potential of GIS in providing an efficient solution to complex phenomena that would otherwise be tedious to achieve through other means. Not only does GIS offer greater accuracy, but it also generates valuable information that can be used as input for correlation analysis. Furthermore, this system serves as a decision support tool for geotechnical engineers.

Keywords: ArcGIS, borehole data, geographic information system, geo-database, interpolation, SPT N-value, soil classification, Φ-Value, bearing capacity

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Authors: Le Xuan Cau

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Flash flood is occurred in short time rainfall interval: from 1 hour to 12 hours in small and medium basins. Flash floods typically have two characteristics: large water flow and big flow velocity. Flash flood is occurred at hill valley site (strip of lowland of terrain) in a catchment with large enough distribution area, steep basin slope, and heavy rainfall. The risk of flash floods is determined through Gridded Basin Flash Flood Potential Index (GBFFPI). Flash Flood Potential Index (FFPI) is determined through terrain slope flash flood index, soil erosion flash flood index, land cover flash floods index, land use flash flood index, rainfall flash flood index. Determining GBFFPI, each cell in a map can be considered as outlet of a water accumulation basin. GBFFPI of the cell is determined as basin average value of FFPI of the corresponding water accumulation basin. Based on GIS, a tool is developed to compute GBFFPI using ArcObjects SDK for .NET. The maps of GBFFPI are built in two types: GBFFPI including rainfall flash flood index (real time flash flood warning) or GBFFPI excluding rainfall flash flood index. GBFFPI Tool can be used to determine a high flash flood potential site in a large region as quick as possible. The GBFFPI is improved from conventional FFPI. The advantage of GBFFPI is that GBFFPI is taking into account the basin response (interaction of cells) and determines more true flash flood site (strip of lowland of terrain) while conventional FFPI is taking into account single cell and does not consider the interaction between cells. The GBFFPI Map of QuangNam, QuangNgai, DaNang, Hue is built and exported to Google Earth. The obtained map proves scientific basis of GBFFPI.

Keywords: ArcObjects SDK for NET, basin average value of FFPI, gridded basin flash flood potential index, GBFFPI map

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Authors: Sukalyan Chakraborty

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Arsenic contamination in groundwater has been a matter of serious concern worldwide. Globally, arsenic contaminated water has caused serious chronic human diseases and in the last few decades the transfer of arsenic to human beings via food chain has gained much attention because food represents a further potential exposure pathway to arsenic in instances where crops are irrigated with high arsenic groundwater, grown in contaminated fields or cooked with arsenic laden water. In the present study, the groundwater of Sahibganj district of Jharkhand has been analysed to find the degree of contamination and its probable associated risk due to direct consumption or irrigation. The present study area comprising of three blocks, namely Sahibganj, Rajmahal and Udhwa in Sahibganj district of Jharkhand state, India, situated in the western bank of river Ganga has been investigated for arsenic contamination in groundwater, soil and crops predominantly growing in the region. Associated physicochemical parameters of groundwater including pH, temperature, electrical conductivity (EC), total dissolved solids (TDS), dissolved oxygen (DO), oxidation reduction potential (ORP), ammonium, nitrate and chloride were assessed to understand the mobilisation mechanism and chances of arsenic exposure from soil to crops and further into the food chain. Results suggested the groundwater to be dominantly Ca-HCO3- type with low redox potential and high total dissolved solids load. Major cations followed the order of Ca ˃ Na ˃ Mg ˃ K. The concentration of major anions was found in the order of HCO3− > Cl− > SO42− > NO3− > PO43− varied between 0.009 to 0.20 mg L-1. Fe concentrations of the groundwater samples were below WHO permissible limit varying between 54 to 344 µg L-1. Phosphate concentration was high and showed a significant positive correlation with arsenic. As concentrations ranged from 7 to 115 µg L-1 in premonsoon, between 2 and 98 µg L-1 in monsoon and 1 to 133µg L-1 in postmonsoon season. Arsenic concentration was found to be much higher than the WHO or BIS permissible limit in majority of the villages in the study area. Arsenic was also seen to be positively correlated with iron and phosphate. PCA results demonstrated the role of both geological condition and anthropogenic inputs to influence the water quality. Arsenic was also found to increase with depth up to 100 m from the surface. Calculation of carcinogenic and non-carcinogenic effects of the arsenic concentration in the communities exposed to the groundwater for drinking and other purpose indicated high risk with an average of more than 1 in a 1000 population. Health risk analysis revealed high to very high carcinogenic and non-carcinogenic risk for adults and children in the communities dependent on groundwater of the study area. Observation suggested the groundwater to be considerably polluted with arsenic and posing significant health risk for the exposed communities. The mobilisation mechanism of arsenic also could be identified from the results suggesting reductive dissolution of Fe oxyhydroxides due to high phosphate concentration from agricultural input arsenic release from the sediments along river Ganges.

Keywords: arsenic, physicochemical parameters, mobilisation, health effects

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Authors: N. Ibrahim-Rassoul, A. Kessi, E. K. Si-Ahmed, N. Djilali, J. Legrand

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The static and dynamic formation of liquid water bridges is analyzed using a combination of visualization experiments in a microchannel with a mathematical model. This paper presents experimental and theoretical findings of water plug/capillary bridge formation in a 250 μm squared microchannel. The approach combines mathematical and numerical modeling with experimental visualization and measurements. The generality of the model is also illustrated for flow conditions encountered in manipulation of polymeric materials and formation of liquid bridges between patterned surfaces. The predictions of the model agree favorably the observations as well as with the experimental recordings.

Keywords: green energy, mathematical modeling, fuel cell, water plug, gas diffusion layer, surface of revolution

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Authors: Rahmi Yetri Kasri, Paulus Wirutomo

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Citizen engagement approach has become increasingly important in the rural water sector. However, the question remains as to what exactly is meant by citizen engagement and how this approach can lead to sustainable service delivery. To understand citizen engagement, this paper argues that we need to understand basic elements of social life that consist of social structure, process, and culture within the realm of community’s living environment. Extracting from empirical data from Pamsimas villages in rural West Java, Indonesia, this paper will identify basic elements of social life and environment that influence and form the engagement of citizen and government in delivering and sustaining rural water supply services in Indonesia. Pamsimas or the Water Supply and Sanitation for Low Income Communities project is the biggest rural water program in Indonesia, implemented since 1993 in more than 27,000 villages. The sustainability of this sector is explored through a rural water supply service delivery life-cycle, starts with capital investment, operational and maintenance, asset expansion or renewal, strategic planning for future services and matching cost with financing. Using mixed-method data collection in case study research, this paper argues that increased citizen engagement contributes to a more sustainable rural water service delivery.

Keywords: citizen engagement, rural water supply, sustainability, Indonesia

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Authors: Pier Andrea Marras, Daniela Lima, Pedro Matos Soares, Rita Maria Cardoso, Daniela Medas, Elisabetta Dore, Giovanni De Giudici

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Climate change effects on the hydrologic cycle are the main concern for the evaluation of water management strategies. Climate models project scenarios of precipitation changes in the future, considering greenhouse emissions. In this study, the EURO-CORDEX (European Coordinated Regional Downscaling Experiment) climate models were first evaluated in a Mediterranean island (Sardinia) against observed precipitation for a historical reference period (1976-2005). A weighted multi-model ensemble (ENS) was built, weighting the single models based on their ability to reproduce observed rainfall. Future projections (2071-2100) were carried out using the 8.5 RCP emissions scenario to evaluate changes in precipitations. ENS was then used as climate forcing for the SWAT model (Soil and Water Assessment Tool), with the aim to assess the consequences of such projected changes on streamflow and runoff of two small catchments located in the South-West Sardinia. Results showed that a decrease of mean rainfall values, up to -25 % at yearly scale, is expected for the future, along with an increase of extreme precipitation events. Particularly in the eastern and southern areas, extreme events are projected to increase by 30%. Such changes reflect on the hydrologic cycle with a decrease of mean streamflow and runoff, except in spring, when runoff is projected to increase by 20-30%. These results stress that the Mediterranean is a hotspot for climate change, and the use of model tools can provide very useful information to adopt water and land management strategies to deal with such changes.

Keywords: EURO-CORDEX, climate change, hydrology, SWAT model, Sardinia, multi-model ensemble

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Authors: Adel Hanna, Tahar Ayadat, Mohammad Etezad, Cyrille Cros

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A number of theoretical methods have been developed over the years to calculate the amount settlement of the soil reinforced with group of stone columns. The results deduced from these methods sometimes show large disagreement with the experimental observations. The reason of this divergence might be due to the fact that many of the previous methods assumed the deform shape of the columns which is different with the actual case. A new method to calculate settlement of the ground reinforced with group of stone columns is presented in this paper which overcomes the restrictions made by previous theories. This method is based on results deduced from numerical modeling. Results obtained from the model are validated.

Keywords: stone columns, group, soft soil, settlement, prediction

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Authors: Chiahi Nadia

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The aim of our work is to monitor the behavior of soft wheat on a morpho-physiological and agronomic scale under the influence of treated wastewater. Physico-chemical analyses of the treated sewage were also carried out, and our tests were carried out on two varieties of common wheat (Triticum aestivum L), HD1220 and ARZ. For this, a seedling was made, and two different irrigations were chosen, one using treated wastewater from the Sedrata (Wilaya of Souk ahras - Algeria) WWTP and the other stormwater as a control. The tests focused on soil and soft wheat parameters, and based on our results, the soft wheat development, physiological and yield parameters appear to respond favorably to the use of these waters.

Keywords: common wheat (Triticum aestivum L.), purified wastewater, irrigation, morph physiological and agronomic parameters

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Authors: Valentina Alessandra Carvalho do Vale, Elmo Thiago Lins Cöuras Ford, Rudson de Sousa Lima

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Around the planet Earth, access to clean water is a problem whose importance has increased due to population growth and its misuse. Thus, projects that seek to transform water sources improper (salty and brackish) in drinking water sources are current issues. However, this transformation generally requires a high cost of implementation, operation and maintenance. In this context, the aim of this work is the development of a passive solar distiller for brackish water, made from recycled and durable materials such as aluminum, cement, glass and PVC basins. The results reveal factors that influence the performance and viability of the expansion project.

Keywords: solar distiller, passive distiller, distiller with pyramidal roof, ecologically correct

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Authors: Hyung T. Kwak, Jun Gao, Yao An, Alfred Kleinhammes, Yue Wu

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Surface wettability is a crucial factor in oil recovery. In oil industry, the rock wettability involves the interplay between water, oil, and solid surface. Therefore, studying the interplay between adsorptions of water and hydrocarbon molecules on solid surface would be very informative for understanding rock wettability. Here we use the in-situ Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) gas isotherm technique to study competitive adsorptions of water and isopropanol, an intermediate step from hydrocarbons. This in-situ NMR technique obtains information on thermodynamic properties such as the isotherm, molecular dynamics via spin relaxation measurements, and adsorption kinetics such as how fast the system can reach thermal equilibrium after changes of vapor pressures. Using surfaces of silica glass beads, which can be modified from hydrophilic to hydrophobic, we obtained information on the influence of surface hydrophilicity on the state of surface water via obtained thermodynamic and dynamic properties.

Keywords: Wettability, NMR, Gas Isotherm, Hydrophilicity, adsorption

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Authors: W. A. M. Abdel Kawy, Kh. M. Darwish

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Adequate land use selection is an essential step towards achieving sustainable development. The main object of this study is to develop a new scale for land suitability system, which can be compatible with the local conditions. Furthermore, it aims to adapt the conventional land suitability systems to match the actual environmental status in term of soil types, climate and other conditions to evaluate land suitability for newly reclaimed areas. The new system suggests calculation of land suitability considering 20 factors affecting crop selection grouping into five categories; crop-agronomic, land management, development, environmental conditions and socio – economic status. Each factor is summed by each other to calculate the total points. The highest rating for each factor indicates the highest preference for the evaluated crop. The highest rated crops for each group are those with the highest points for the actual suitability. This study was conducted to assess the application efficiency of the new land suitability scale in recently reclaimed sites in Egypt. Moreover, 35 representative soil profiles were examined, and soil samples were subjected to some physical and chemical analysis. Actual and potential suitabilities were calculated by using the new land suitability scale. Finally, the obtained results confirmed the applicability of a new land suitability system to recommend the most promising crop rotation that can be applied in the study areas. The outputs of this research revealed that the integration of different aspects for modeling and adapting a proposed model provides an effective and flexible technique, which contribute to improve land suitability assessment for several crops to be more accurate and reliable.

Keywords: analytic hierarchy process, land suitability, multi-criteria analysis, new reclaimed areas, soil parameters

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Authors: Gulelat Gatew

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Bamboo Woven Strand Board (WSB) products are manufactured from Ethiopia highland bamboo (Yushania alpina) as a multiple layer mat structure for enhanced mechanical performance. Hence, it shows similar mechanical properties as tropical hardwood products. WSB, therefore, constitutes a sustainable alternative to tropical hardwood products. The resin and wax ratio had a great influence on the determinants properties of the product quality such as internal bonding, water absorption, thickness swelling, bending and stiffness properties. Among these properties, because of the hygroscopic nature of the bamboo, thickness swelling and water absorption are important performances of WSB for using in construction and outdoor facilities. When WSB is exposed to water or moist environment, they tend to swell and absorb water in all directions. The degree of swelling and water absorption depends on the type of resin used, resin formulation, resin ratio, wax type and ratio. The objective of this research is investigating effects of phenol formaldehyde and wax on thickness swelling and water absorption behavior on bamboo WSB for construction and outdoor facilities. The experiments were conducted to measure the effects of wax and phenol-formaldehyde resin content on WSB thickness swelling and water absorption which leads to investigate its effect on dimension stability and mechanical properties. Both experiments were performed with 2–hour and 24-hour water immersion test and a significant set of data regarding the influence of such method parameters is also presented. The addition of up to 2% wax with 10% of phenol formaldehyde significantly reduced thickness swelling and water absorption of WSB which resulted in making it more hydrophobic and less susceptible to the influences of moisture in high humidity conditions compared to the panels without wax.

Keywords: woven strand board (WSB), water absorption, thickness swelling, phenol formaldehyde resin

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Authors: N. Li, Y. M. Cheng

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In this paper, the classical bearing capacity problem is re-considered from discrete element analysis. In the discrete element approach, the bearing capacity problem is considered from the elastic stage to plastic stage to rupture stage (large displacement). The bearing capacity failure mechanism of a strip footing on soil is investigated, and the influence of micro-parameters on the bearing capacity of soil is also observed. It is found that the distinct element method (DEM) gives very good visualized results, and basically coincides well with that derived by the classical methods.

Keywords: bearing capacity, distinct element method, failure mechanism, large displacement

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Authors: Nayan Kishore Giri, Ramakar Jha

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Water is a major element for the life of all the mankind in the earth. India’s surface water flows through fourteen major streams. Indian rivers are the main source of potable water in India. In the eastern part of India many toxic hazardous metals discharged into the river from mining industries, which leads many deadly diseases to human being. So the potable water quality is very significant and vital concern at present as it is related with the present and future health perspective of the human race. Consciousness of health risks linked with unsafe water is still very low among the many rural and urban areas in India. Only about 7% of total Indian people using water purifier. This unhealthy situation of water is not only present in India but also present in many underdeveloped countries. The major reason behind this is the high cost of water purifier. This current study geared towards development of economical and efficient technology for the removal of maximum possible toxic metals and pathogen bacteria. The work involves the design of portable purification system and purifying material. In this design Coconut shell granular activated carbon(GAC) and polypropylene filter cloths were used in this system. The activated carbon is impregnated with Iron(Fe). Iron is used because it enhances the adsorption capacity of activated carbon. The thorough analysis of iron impregnated activated carbon(Fe-AC) is done by Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD) , BET surface area test were done. Then 10 ppm of each toxic metal were infiltrated through the designed purification system and they were analysed in Atomic absorption spectrum (AAS). The results are very promising and it is low cost. This work will help many people who are in need of potable water. They can be benefited for its affordability. It could be helpful in industries and other domestic usage.

Keywords: potable water, coconut shell GAC, polypropylene filter cloths, SEM, XRD, BET, AAS

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Authors: A. Pensiri, K. Nantaporn, P. Parichut

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Tourism is very important to the economy of many countries due to the large contribution in the areas of employment and income generation. However, the rapid growth of tourism can also be considered as one of the major uses of water user, and therefore also have a significant and detrimental impact on the environment. Guest behavior in water usage can be used to manage water in hotels for sustainable water resources management. This research presents a study of hotel guest water usage behavior at two hotels, namely Hotel A (located in Kathu district) and Hotel B (located in Muang district) in Phuket Province, Thailand, as case studies. Primary and secondary data were collected from the hotel manager through interview and questionnaires. The water flow rate was measured in-situ from each water supply device in the standard room type at each hotel, including hand washing faucets, bathroom faucets, shower and toilet flush. For the interview, the majority of respondents (n = 204 for Hotel A and n = 244 for Hotel B) were aged between 21 years and 30 years (53% for Hotel A and 65% for Hotel B) and the majority were foreign (78% in Hotel A, and 92% in Hotel B) from American, France and Austria for purposes of tourism (63% in Hotel A, and 55% in Hotel B). The data showed that water consumption ranged from 188 litres to 507 liters, and 383 litres to 415 litres per overnight guest in Hotel A and Hotel B (n = 244), respectively. These figures exceed the water efficiency benchmark set for Tropical regions by the International Tourism Partnership (ITP). It is recommended that guest water saving initiatives should be implemented at hotels. Moreover, the results showed that guests have high satisfaction for the hotels, the front office service reveal the top rates of average score of 4.35 in Hotel A and 4.20 in Hotel B, respectively, while the luxury decoration and room cleanliness exhibited the second satisfaction scored by the guests in Hotel A and B, respectively. On the basis of this information, the findings can be very useful to improve customer service satisfaction and pay attention to this particular aspect for better hotel management.

Keywords: hotel, tourism, Phuket, water usage

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Authors: Kgantsi B. T., Ochwelwang A. R., Mathuthu M., Jegede O. A.

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Anthropogenic activities near water bodies contribute to poor water quality, which degrades the condition of the biota and elevates the risk to human health. The Vaal River is essential in supplying Gauteng and neighboring regions of South Africa with portable water for a variety of consumers and industries. Consequently, it is necessary to monitor and assess the radioactive risk in relation to the river's water quality. This study used an inductive coupled plasma mass spectrometer (ICPMS) to analyze the radionuclide activity concentration in the Vaal River, South Africa. Along with thorium and potassium, the total uranium concentration was calculated using the isotopic content of uranium. The elemental concentration of ²³⁸U, ²³⁵U, ²³⁴U, ²³²Th, and 40K were translated into activity concentrations. To assess the water safety for all users and consumers, all values were compared to world average activity concentrations 35, 30, and 400 Bqkg⁻¹ for ²³⁸U, ²³⁴Th, and ⁴⁰K, respectively, according to the UNSCEAR report. The results will serve as a database for further monitoring and evaluation of the radionuclide from the river, taking cognisance of potential health hazards.

Keywords: Val Rivers, ICPMS, uranium, risks

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Authors: Muchun Yu, Xue Gao, Qian Chen

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As a novel passive vibration isolation technology, molecular spring isolator (MSI) is investigated in this paper. An MSI consists of water and hydrophobic zeolites as working medium. Under periodic excitation, water molecules intrude into hydrophobic pores of zeolites when the pressure rises and water molecules extrude from hydrophobic pores when pressure drops. At the same time, energy is stored, released and dissipated. An MSI of piston-cylinder structure was designed in this work. Experiments were conducted to investigate the stiffness properties of MSI. The results show that MSI exhibits high-static-low dynamic (HSLD) stiffness. Furthermore, factors such as the quantity of zeolites, temperature, and ions in water are proved to have an influence on the stiffness properties of MSI.

Keywords: hydrophobic zeolites, molecular spring, stiffness, vibration isolation

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Authors: S. Naveen, V. Sivasubramanian

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A modeling theory is proposed to consider the vaporization of LNG during its contact with water following its release from an underwater source. The spillage of LNG underwater can lead to a decrease in the surface temperature of water and subsequent freezing. This can in turn affect the heat flux distribution from the released LNG onto the water surrounding it. The available models predict the rate of vaporization considering the surface of contact as a solid wall, and considering the entire phenomena as a solid-liquid operation. This assumption greatly under-predicted the overall heat transfer on LNG water interface. The vaporization flux would first decrease during the film boiling, followed by an increase during the transition boiling and a steady decrease during the nucleate boiling. A superheat theory is introduced to enhance the accuracy in the prediction of the heat transfer between LNG and water. The work suggests that considering the superheat theory can greatly enhance the prediction of LNG vaporization on underwater releases and also help improve the study of overall thermodynamics.

Keywords: evaporation rate, heat transfer, LNG vaporization, underwater LNG release

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Authors: A. GuhaRay, C. V. S. P. Kiranmayi, S. Rudraraju

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The present study considers the effect of variation of different geotechnical random variables in the design of stone column-foundation systems for assessing the bearing capacity and consolidation settlement of highly compressible soil. The soil and stone column properties, spacing, diameter and arrangement of stone columns are considered as the random variables. Probability of failure (P_f) is computed for a target degree of consolidation and a target safe load by Monte Carlo Simulation (MCS). The study shows that the variation in coefficient of radial consolidation (c_r) and cohesion of soil (c_s) are two most important factors influencing Pf. If the coefficient of variation (COV) of c_r exceeds 20%, P_f exceeds 0.001, which is unsafe following the guidelines of US Army Corps of Engineers. The bearing capacity also exceeds its safe value for COV of c_s > 30%. It is also observed that as the spacing between the stone column increases, the probability of reaching a target degree of consolidation decreases. Accordingly, design guidelines, considering both consolidation and bearing capacity of improved ground, are proposed for different spacing and diameter of stone columns and geotechnical random variables.

Keywords: bearing capacity, consolidation, geotechnical random variables, probability of failure, stone columns

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Authors: Mehaiguene Madjid, Touhari Fadhila, Meddi Mohamed

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The Cheliff basin offers a good hydrological example for the possibility of studying the problem which elucidated in the future, because of the unclearity in several aspects and hydraulic installation. Thus, our study of the Cheliff basin is divided into two principal parts: The spatial evaluation of the precipitation: also, the understanding of the modes of the reconstitution of the resource in water supposes a good knowledge of the structuring of the precipitation fields in the studied space. In the goal of a good knowledge of revitalizes them in water and their management integrated one judged necessary to establish a precipitation card of the Cheliff basin for a good understanding of the evolution of the resource in water in the basin and that goes will serve as basis for all study of hydraulic planning in the Cheliff basin. Then, the establishment of the precipitation card of the Cheliff basin answered a direct need of setting to the disposition of the researchers for the region and a document of reference that will be completed therefore and actualized. The hydrological study, based on the statistical hydrometric data processing will lead us to specify the hydrological terms of the assessment hydrological and to clarify the fundamental aspects of the annual flow, seasonal, extreme and thus of their variability and resources surface water.

Keywords: hydrological assessment, surface water resources, Cheliff, Algeria

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Authors: Jamal A. Radaideh, A. J. Radaideh

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Being a problem threatening the planet and its ecosystems, the climate change has been considered for a long time as a disturbing topic impacting water resources in Jordan. Jordan is expected for instance to be highly vulnerable to climate change consequences given its unbalanced distribution between water resources availability and existing demands. Thus, action on adaptation to climate impacts is urgently needed to cope with the negative consequences of climate change. Adaptation to global change must include prudent management of treated wastewater as a renewable resource, especially in regions lacking groundwater or where groundwater is already over exploited. This paper highlights the expected negative effects of climate change on the already scarce water sources and to motivate researchers and decision makers to take precautionary measures and find alternatives to keep the level of water supplies at the limits required for different consumption sectors in terms of quantity and quality. The paper will focus on assessing the potential for wastewater recycling as an adaptation measure to cope with water scarcity in Jordan and to consider wastewater as integral part of the national water budget to solve environmental problems. The paper also identified a research topic designed to help the nation progress in making the most appropriate use of the resource, namely for agricultural irrigation. Wastewater is a promising alternative to fill the shortage in water resources, especially due to climate changes, and to preserve the valuable fresh water to give priority to securing drinking water for the population from these resources and at the same time raise the efficiency of the use of available resources. Jordan has more than 36 wastewater treatment plants distributed throughout the country and producing about 386,000 CM/day of reclaimed water. According to the reports of water quality control programs, more than 85 percent of this water is of a quality that is completely identical to the quality suitable for irrigation of field crops and forest trees according to the requirements of Jordanian Standard No. 893/2006.

Keywords: climate change effects on water resources, adaptation on climate change, treated wastewater recycling, arid and semi-arid regions, Jordan

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Authors: David Loh, Wan Chee Wai, Pei Nan, Chen Zhe

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To increase the conveyance capacity to Western Singapore and to meet Singapore’s long-term water needs in a more cost-effective manner, four new transmission pipelines consisting of two 2200 mm diameter water pipes and two 1200mm diameter water pipes will be needed by 2024 to convey water from a Water Reclamation Plant to existing networks in the west region of Singapore. Out of the several possible routes studied, the most cost-effective and technically feasible route was selected to lay the proposed 1.6km-long pipelines that cross a channel via a 6m diameter subsea tunnel. This paper outlines the challenges the team faced throughout the project thus far. It also examined the difficulties such as (1) construction of a 56m-deep launching shaft near a highly sensitive 700mm diameter Gas Transmission Pipeline (GTP) and at a location with high groundwater; (2) manpower and supply disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic situation.

Keywords: underwater tunnel, subsea engineering, subsea tunnel construction, waterpipe construction

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Authors: Joshua Chima Chizoba, Wisdom Izuchukwu Uzoma, Elizabeth Ifeyiwa Okoyeh

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Water cannot be optimally used and sustained unless the quality is periodically assessed. The study area Umunneochi and environs are located in south eastern part of Nigeria. It stretches geographically from latitudes 50501N to 60000N and longitudes 70201E to 70301. The major geologic formations in the area include the Asu River group, Nkporo Shale, and Ajali Sandstone. The aim of this study is to evaluate the hydrochemical characteristics of surface and ground water sources in parts of Umunneochi and environs in order to establish portability of the water sources for drinking, domestic and irrigation purposes. A total of 15 samples were collected randomly from streams, springs and wells. The samples were analyzed for physicochemical parameters and heavy metals using handheld digital kits, photometer, titration method and Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometer (AAS) following acceptable standards. The obtained analytical data were interpreted, and results were compared with World Health Organization (WHO) standard. The concentration of pH, SO42-and Cl- range from 5.81 mg/l – 6.07 mg/l, 41.93 mg/l – 142.95 mg/l and 20.00 mg/l – 111 mg/l respectively, while Pb and Zn revealed a relative low mean concentration of 0.14 mg/l and 0.40 mg/l, which are all within (WHO) permissible limits except pH. About 27% of the samples are moderately hard. This is attributed to the mining activities in the areas. The abundance of cations and anions in the area are in the order of K+>Na+>Mg2+>Ca2+ and SO4->Cl->HCO3->NO3-, respectively. Chloride, bicarbonate, and nitrate are all within the permissible limits. 13.33% of the total samples contain Sulphate above the standard permissible limits. The values of calculated Water Quality Index (WQI) are less than 50 indicating excellent water. The predominant water-type in the study area is Na-Cl water type and mixed Ca-Mg-Cl water type based on the sample plots on the Piper diagram. The Sodium Absorption Ratio (SAR) calculations showed excellent water for consumption and also good water for irrigation purpose with low sodium and alkalinity ratio respectively. Government water projects are recommended in the area for sustainable domestic and agricultural water supply to ease the stress of water supply problems.

Keywords: groundwater, hydrochemical, physichochemical, water-type, sodium adsorption ratio

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Authors: Ashutosh Pujari

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The sharing of natural resources is one of the most important aspects of relations between two neighboring countries, especially when it is a resource that has a presence in both the countries in question. River water is an important resource that is shared between India and its neighbors, namely Pakistan and Bangladesh. India shares Indus, Chenab, and Jhelum rivers with Pakistan, while with Bangladesh, it shares Ganges and Brahmaputra. However, it is interesting to note how does India deals with her sharing of water with these two countries. Although water sharing with both the countries has been dotted by irritants over the years, relations with Bangladesh is undoubtedly better in this respect. Given the common history of the region, this paper analyses the reasons behind this difference in the relationship between India and her neighbors and its implications for the present times. Through critical analysis of literature and the official policy of all the governments involved and the narratives present, this paper tries to present understand how India’s relations with its neighbors are a function of geopolitics, culture, and perceptions on both sides.

Keywords: geopolitics, river water sharing, India-Pakistan relations, India-Bangladesh relations

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Authors: Turuganti Venkateswarlu, Jagadeesh Anmala

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Excessive runoffs from various non-point source land uses, and other point sources are rapidly contaminating the water quality of streams in the Upper Green River watershed, Kentucky, USA. It is essential to maintain the stream water quality as the river basin is one of the major freshwater sources in this province. It is also important to understand the water quality parameters (WQPs) quantitatively and qualitatively along with their important features as stream water is sensitive to climatic events and land-use practices. In this paper, a model was developed for predicting one of the significant WQPs, Fecal Coliform (FC) from precipitation, temperature, urban land use factor (ULUF), agricultural land use factor (ALUF), and forest land-use factor (FLUF) using Random Forest (RF) algorithm. The RF model, a novel ensemble learning algorithm, can even find out advanced feature importance characteristics from the given model inputs for different combinations. This model’s outcomes showed a good correlation between FC and climate events and land use factors (R2 = 0.94) and precipitation and temperature are the primary influencing factors for FC.

Keywords: water quality, land use factors, random forest, fecal coliform

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Authors: Elaine Lima Da Fonseca, Eliomar Pereira Da Silva Filho

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The modeling of areas susceptible to soil loss by hydro erosive processes consists of a simplified instrument of reality with the purpose of predicting future behaviors from the observation and interaction of a set of geoenvironmental factors. The models of potential areas for soil loss will be obtained through binary logistic regression, artificial neural networks, and support vector machines. The choice of the municipality of Colorado do Oeste in the south of the western Amazon is due to soil degradation due to anthropogenic activities, such as agriculture, road construction, overgrazing, deforestation, and environmental and socioeconomic configurations. Initially, a soil erosion inventory map constructed through various field investigations will be designed, including the use of remotely piloted aircraft, orbital imagery, and the PLANAFLORO/RO database. 100 sampling units with the presence of erosion will be selected based on the assumptions indicated in the literature, and, to complement the dichotomous analysis, 100 units with no erosion will be randomly designated. The next step will be the selection of the predictive parameters that exert, jointly, directly, or indirectly, some influence on the mechanism of occurrence of soil erosion events. The chosen predictors are altitude, declivity, aspect or orientation of the slope, curvature of the slope, composite topographic index, flow power index, lineament density, normalized difference vegetation index, drainage density, lithology, soil type, erosivity, and ground surface temperature. After evaluating the relative contribution of each predictor variable, the erosion susceptibility model will be applied to the municipality of Colorado do Oeste - Rondônia through the SPSS Statistic 26 software. Evaluation of the model will occur through the determination of the values of the R² of Cox & Snell and the R² of Nagelkerke, Hosmer and Lemeshow Test, Log Likelihood Value, and Wald Test, in addition to analysis of the Confounding Matrix, ROC Curve and Accumulated Gain according to the model specification. The validation of the synthesis map resulting from both models of the potential risk of soil erosion will occur by means of Kappa indices, accuracy, and sensitivity, as well as by field verification of the classes of susceptibility to erosion using drone photogrammetry. Thus, it is expected to obtain the mapping of the following classes of susceptibility to erosion very low, low, moderate, very high, and high, which may constitute a screening tool to identify areas where more detailed investigations need to be carried out, applying more efficient social resources.

Keywords: modeling, susceptibility to erosion, artificial intelligence, Amazon

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Authors: Mohamed Ali Abdennadher

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Digital rock physics, an emerging field leveraging advanced imaging and numerical techniques, offers a promising approach to investigating the mechanical properties of granular materials without extensive physical experiments. This study focuses on using X-Ray Computed Tomography (CT) to capture the three-dimensional (3D) structure of coarse-grained soil at the particle level, combined with finite element analysis (FEA) to simulate the soil's behavior under compression. The primary goal is to establish a reliable virtual testing framework that can replicate laboratory results and offer deeper insights into soil mechanics. The methodology involves acquiring high-resolution CT scans of coarse-grained soil samples to visualize internal particle morphology. These CT images undergo processing through noise reduction, thresholding, and watershed segmentation techniques to isolate individual particles, preparing the data for subsequent analysis. A custom Python script is employed to extract particle shapes and conduct a statistical analysis of particle size distribution. The processed particle data then serves as the basis for creating a finite element model comprising approximately 500 particles subjected to one-dimensional compression. The FEA simulations explore the effects of mesh refinement and friction coefficient on stress distribution at grain contacts. A multi-layer meshing strategy is applied, featuring finer meshes at inter-particle contacts to accurately capture mechanical interactions and coarser meshes within particle interiors to optimize computational efficiency. Despite the known challenges in parallelizing FEA to high core counts, this study demonstrates that an appropriate domain-level parallelization strategy can achieve significant scalability, allowing simulations to extend to very high core counts. The results show a strong correlation between the finite element simulations and laboratory compression test data, validating the effectiveness of the virtual experiment approach. Detailed stress distribution patterns reveal that soil compression behavior is significantly influenced by frictional interactions, with frictional sliding, rotation, and rolling at inter-particle contacts being the primary deformation modes under low to intermediate confining pressures. These findings highlight that CT data analysis combined with numerical simulations offers a robust method for approximating soil behavior, potentially reducing the need for physical laboratory experiments.

Keywords: X-Ray computed tomography, finite element analysis, soil compression behavior, particle morphology

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Authors: Raviteja Chintala

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Water shortage in many areas of the world have predominantly increased the demand for efficient methods involved in the production of drinking water, So purification of water invoking cost effective and efficient methods is a challenging field of research. In this regard, Reverse osmosis membrane desalination of both seawater and inland brackish water is currently being deployed in various locations around the world. In the present work an attempt is made to integrate these existing technologies with novel method, Wherein carbon nanotubes at the lab scale are prepared which further replace activated carbon tubes being used traditionally. This has proven to enhance the efficiency of the water filter, Effectively neutralising most of the organic impurities. Furthermore, This ensures the reduction in TDS. Carbon nanotubes have wide range in scope of applications such as composite reinforcements, Field emitters, Sensors, Energy storage and energy conversion devices and catalysts support phases, Because of their unusual mechanical, Electrical, Thermal and structural properties. In particular, The large specific surface area, as well as the high chemical and thermal stability, Makes carbon nanotube an attractive adsorbent in waste water treatment. Carbon nanotubes are effective in eliminating these harmful media from water as an adsorbent. In this work, Candle soot method has been incorporated for the preparation of carbon nanotubes and mixed with activated charcoal in different compositions. The effect of composition change is monitored by using TDS measuring meter. As the composition of Nano carbon increases, The TDS of the water gradually decreases. In order to enhance the life time for carbon filter, Nano tubes are provided with larger surface area.

Keywords: TDS (Total Dissolved Solids), carbon nanotubes, water, candle soot

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Authors: Wenwen Lei, David R. Mckenzie

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Recent findings of anomalously high gas flow rates in carbon nanotubes show smooth hydrophobic walls can increase specular reflection of molecules and reduce the tangential momentum accommodation coefficient (TMAC). Here we report the first measurements of water vapor flows in microtubes over a wide humidity range and show that for hydrophobic silica there is a range of humidity over which an adsorbed water layer reduces TMAC and accelerates flow. Our results show that this association between hydrophobicity and accelerated moisture flow occurs in readily available materials. We develop a hierarchical theory that unifies Maxwell’s ideas on TMAC with Langmuir’s ideas on adsorption. We fit the TMAC data as a function of humidity with the hierarchical theory based on two stages of Langmuir adsorption and derive total adsorption isotherms for water on hydrophobic silica that agree with direct observations. We propose structures for each stage of the water adsorption, the first reducing TMAC by a passivation of adsorptive patches and a smoothing of the surface, the second resembling bulk water with large TMAC. We find that leak testing of moisture barriers with an ideal gas such as helium may not be accurate enough for critical applications and that direct measurements of the water leak rate should be made.

Keywords: water vapor flows, silica microtubes, TMAC, enhanced flow rates

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