Search results for: airborne hazardous materials

Authors: Omar A. Abuobidalla, Mingyuan Chen, Satyaveer S. Chauhan

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Railroad transportation of hazardous materials freights is important to the North America economics that supports the national’s supply chain. This paper introduces various extensions of the dynamic hazardous materials trip plan problems. The problem captures most of the operational features of a real-world railroad transportations systems that dynamically initiates a set of blocks and assigns each shipment to a single block path or multiple block paths. The dynamic hazardous materials trip plan policies have distinguishing features that are integrating the blocking plan, and the block activation decisions. We also present a non-linear mixed integer programming formulation for each variant and present managerial insights based on a hypothetical railroad network. The computation results reveal that the dynamic car scheduling policies are not only able to take advantage of the capacity of the network but also capable of diminishing the population, and environment risks by rerouting the active blocks along the least risky train services without sacrificing the cost advantage of the railroad. The empirical results of this research illustrate that the issue of integrating the blocking plan, and the train makeup of the hazardous materials freights must receive closer attentions.

Keywords: dynamic car scheduling, planning and scheduling hazardous materials freights, airborne hazardous materials, gaussian plume model, integrated blocking and routing plans, box model

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Authors: Vinod Kumar Jaysaval, Prateek Agarwal

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Performance prediction of airborne radar is a challenging and cumbersome task in clutter scenario for different types of targets. A generalized model requires to predict the performance of Radar for air targets as well as ground moving targets. In this paper, we propose a generalized model to bring out the performance of airborne radar for different Pulsed Repetition Frequency (PRF) as well as different type of targets. The model provides a platform to bring out different subsystem parameters for different applications and performance requirements under different types of clutter terrain.

Keywords: airborne radar, blind zone, clutter, probability of detection

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Authors: Chu Wan-Loy, Kok Yih-Yih, Choong Siew-Ling

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The human health risks due to poor air quality caused by a wide array of microorganisms have attracted much interest. Airborne algae have been reported as early as 19th century and they can be found in the air of tropic and warm atmospheres. Airborne algae normally originate from water surfaces, soil, trees, buildings and rock surfaces. It is estimated that at least 2880 algal cells are inhaled per day by human. However, there are relatively little data published on airborne algae and its related adverse health effects except sporadic reports of algae associated clinical allergenicity. A collection of airborne algae cultures has been established following a recent survey on the occurrence of airborne algae in indoor and outdoor environments in Kuala Lumpur. The aim of this study was to investigate the allergenic potential of the isolated airborne green and blue-green algae, namely Scenedesmus sp., Cylindrospermum sp. and Hapalosiphon sp.. The suspensions of freeze-dried airborne algae were adminstered into balb-c mice model through intra-nasal route to determine their allergenic potential. Results showed that Scenedesmus sp. (1 mg/mL) increased the systemic Ig E levels in mice by 3-8 fold compared to pre-treatment. On the other hand, Cylindrospermum sp. and Hapalosiphon sp. at similar concentration caused the Ig E to increase by 2-4 fold. The potential of airborne algae causing Ig E mediated type 1 hypersensitivity was elucidated using other immunological markers such as cytokine interleukin (IL)- 4, 5, 6 and interferon-ɣ. When we compared the amount of interleukins in mouse serum between day 0 and day 53 (day of sacrifice), Hapalosiphon sp. (1mg/mL) increased the expression of IL4 and 6 by 8 fold while the Cylindrospermum sp. (1mg/mL) increased the expression of IL4 and IFɣ by 8 and 2 fold respectively. In conclusion, repeated exposure to the three selected airborne algae may stimulate the immune response and generate Ig E in a mouse model.

Keywords: airborne algae, respiratory, allergenic, immune response, Malaysia

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Authors: Soukaina Oujana, Peggy Zwolinski

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Fines are heterogeneous residues created during the shredding of non-hazardous waste. They are one of the most challenging issues faced by recyclers, because they are at the present time considered as non-sortable and non-reusable mixtures destined to landfill. However, fines contain a large amount of recoverable materials that could be recycled or reused for the production of solid recovered fuel. This research is conducted in relation to a project named ValoRABES. The aim is to characterize fines and establish a suitable sorting process in order to extract the materials contained in the mixture and define their suitable recovery paths. This paper will highlight the importance of a good sampling and will propose a sampling methodology for fines characterization. First results about the characterization will be also presented.

Keywords: fines, non-hazardous waste, recovery, shredding residues, waste characterization, waste sampling

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Authors: Bozena Dohnalkova

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This paper presents a part of the project solving which is dedicated to the identification of the hazardous waste with the most critical production within the Czech Republic with the aim to study and find the optimal composition of the cement matrix that will ensure maximum content disposal of chosen hazardous waste. In the first stage of project solving – which represents this paper – a specific hazardous waste was chosen, its properties were identified and suitable solidification agents were chosen. Consequently solidification formulas and testing methodology was proposed.

Keywords: cementation, solidification, waste, binder

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Authors: Svetlana Trifonova Djambova, Natalia Bobeva Ivanova, Roumiana Asenova Zaharieva

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Small size acoustic chamber test method has been applied to experimentally evaluate and compare the airborne sound insulation provided by plasterboard sandwich panels filled with mineral wool and with its alternative from recycled textile material (produced by two different technologies). A sound source room is used as an original small-size acoustic chamber, specially built in a real-size room, utilized as a sound receiving room. The experimental results of one of the recycled textile material specimens have demonstrated sound insulation properties similar to those of the mineral wool specimen and even superior in the 1600-3150 Hz frequency range. This study contributes to the improvement of recycled textile material production, as well as to the synergy of heat insulation and sound insulation performances of building materials.

Keywords: airborne sound insulation, heat insulation products, mineral wool, recycled textile material

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Authors: Fanqiang Kong, Jindong Zhang, Daiyin Zhu

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Space-time adaptive processing (STAP) techniques have been motivated as a key enabling technology for advanced airborne radar applications. In this paper, the notion of cognitive radar is extended to STAP technique, and cognitive STAP is discussed. The principle for improving signal-to-clutter ratio (SCNR) based on slow-time coding is given, and the corresponding optimization algorithm based on cyclic and power-like algorithms is presented. Numerical examples show the effectiveness of the proposed method.

Keywords: space-time adaptive processing (STAP), airborne radar, signal-to-clutter ratio, slow-time coding

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Authors: M. I. Mohammed, A. M. Sani, A. S. Bayero

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The aim of this work is to study the effect of farm site location by determining the levels of hazardous metals in poultry eggs samples collected near auto mechanics, industrial areas and roadsides in Kaduna and Kano States of Nigeria. Atomic absorption spectrophotometer was used for the analysis of the metals. The mean concentration ranges of the metals analysed in egg white and egg yolk were Pb: 0.05-0.10mgkg⁻¹, Ni: 0.10-0.30mgkg⁻¹ and Cd: not detected -0.03mgkg⁻¹. It was concluded that farm site locations has very low significant effect on the concentration of hazardous metals level.

Keywords: albumen, Egg, hazardous metals, poultry farms

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Authors: Hamad M. Alnagran, Mohammed S. Imbabi

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Particulate matter (PM) in the air we breathe is detrimental to health. Overcoming this problem has attracted interest and prompted research on the use of PM filtration in commercial buildings and homes to be carried out. The consensus is that tangible health benefits can result from the use of PM filters in most urban environments, to clean up the building’s fresh air supply and thereby reduce exposure of residents to airborne PM. The authors have investigated and are developing a new large-scale Permeodynamic Filtration Technology (PFT) capable of permanently filtering and removing airborne PMs from outdoor spaces, thus also benefiting internal spaces such as the interiors of buildings. Theoretical models were developed, and laboratory trials carried out to determine, and validate through measurement permeodynamic filtration efficiency and pressure drop as functions of PM particle size distributions. The conclusion is that PFT offers a potentially viable, cost effective end of pipe solution to the problem of airborne PM.

Keywords: air filtration, particulate matter, particle size distribution, permeodynamic

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Authors: Anis A. Ansari, Aftab A. Ansari

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Electronic waste is inundating the traditional solid-waste-disposal facilities, which are inadequately designed to handle and manage such type of new wastes. Since electronic waste contains mostly hazardous and even toxic materials, the seriousness of its effects on human health and the environment cannot be ignored in present scenario. Waste from the electronic industry is increasing exponentially day by day. From the last 20 years, we are continuously generating huge quantities of e-waste such as obsolete computers and other discarded electronic components, mainly due to evolution of newer technologies as a result of constant efforts in research and development in this sector. Polymers, one of the major constituents in almost every electronic waste, such as computers, printers, electronic equipment, entertainment devices, mobile phones, television sets etc., are if properly recycled can create a new business opportunity. This would not only create potential market for polymers to improve economy but also the priceless land used as dumping sites of electronic waste, can be utilized for other productive purposes.

Keywords: polymer recycling, electronic waste, hazardous materials, electronic components

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Authors: C. Yin, B. Zhang, Y. Liu, J. Cai

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Airborne EM (AEM) is an effective geophysical exploration tool, especially suitable for ridged mountain areas. In these areas, topography will have serious effects on AEM system responses. However, until now little study has been reported on topographic effect on airborne EM systems. In this paper, an edge-based unstructured finite-element (FE) method is developed for 3D topographic modeling for both frequency and time-domain airborne EM systems. Starting from the frequency-domain Maxwell equations, a vector Helmholtz equation is derived to obtain a stable and accurate solution. Considering that the AEM transmitter and receiver are both located in the air, the scattered field method is used in our modeling. The Galerkin method is applied to discretize the Helmholtz equation for the final FE equations. Solving the FE equations, the frequency-domain AEM responses are obtained. To accelerate the calculation speed, the response of source in free-space is used as the primary field and the PARDISO direct solver is used to deal with the problem with multiple transmitting sources. After calculating the frequency-domain AEM responses, a Hankel’s transform is applied to obtain the time-domain AEM responses. To check the accuracy of present algorithm and to analyze the characteristic of topographic effect on airborne EM systems, both the frequency- and time-domain AEM responses for 3 model groups are simulated: 1) a flat half-space model that has a semi-analytical solution of EM response; 2) a valley or hill earth model; 3) a valley or hill earth with an abnormal body embedded. Numerical experiments show that close to the node points of the topography, AEM responses demonstrate sharp changes. Special attentions need to be paid to the topographic effects when interpreting AEM survey data over rugged topographic areas. Besides, the profile of the AEM responses presents a mirror relation with the topographic earth surface. In comparison to the topographic effect that mainly occurs at the high-frequency end and early time channels, the EM responses of underground conductors mainly occur at low frequencies and later time channels. For the signal of the same time channel, the dB/dt field reflects the change of conductivity better than the B-field. The research of this paper will serve airborne EM in the identification and correction of the topographic effects.

Keywords: 3D, Airborne EM, forward modeling, topographic effect

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Authors: M. S. Rodríguez, F. Cadaveira, M. F. Páramo

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First year university students comprise one of the groups most likely to indulge in hazardous alcohol consumption. The transition from secondary school to university presents a range of academic, social and developmental challenges requiring new responses that will meet the demands of this highly competitive environment. The main purpose of this research was to analyze the influence of gender and hazardous alcohol consumption on academic performance of 300 university students in Spain in a three-year follow-up study. Alcohol consumption was measured using the Alcohol Use Identification Test (AUDIT), and the average university grades were provided by the Academic Management Services of the University. Analysis of variance showed that the level of alcohol consumption significantly affected academic performance. Students undertaking hazardous alcohol consumption obtained the lowest grades during the first three years at university. These effects were particularly marked in the sample of women with a hazardous pattern of alcohol consumption, although the interaction between gender and this type of consumption was not significant. The study highlights the impact of hazardous alcohol consumption on the academic trajectory of university students. The findings confirm that alcohol consumption predicts poor academic performance in first year students and that the low level of performance is maintained throughout the university career.

Keywords: academic performance, alcohol consumption, gender, university students

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Authors: Srinivasa Reddy Mallampati, Byoung Ho Lee, Yoshiharu Mitoma, Simion Cristian

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In recent years, environmental nanotechnology has risen to the forefront and the new properties and enhanced reactivates offered by nanomaterial may offer a new, low-cost paradigm to solving complex environmental pollution problems. This study assessed the synthesis and application of multi-functioned nano-size metallic calcium (nMC) composite for detoxification of hazardous inorganic (heavy metals (HMs)/organic chlorinated/brominated compound (CBCs) contaminants in automobile shredder residue (ASR). ASR residues ball milled with nMC composite can achieve about 90-100% of HMs immobilization and CBCs decomposition. The results highlight the low quantity of HMs leached from ASR residues after treatment with nMC, which was found to be lower than the standard regulatory limit for hazardous waste landfills. The use of nMC composite in a mechanochemical process to treat hazardous ASR (dry conditions) is a simple and innovative approach to remediate hazardous inorganic/organic cross-contaminates in ASR.

Keywords: nano-sized metallic calcium, automobile shredder residue, organic/inorganic contaminants, immobilization, detoxification

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Authors: Sk Ajim Ali

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The present study is an attempt to overview on the major environmental and health impacts due to hazardous waste generation and poor management. In present scenario, not only hazardous waste, but as a common term ‘Waste’ is one of the acceptable and thinkable environmental issues. With excessive increasing population, industrialization and standardization of human’s life style heap in extra waste generation which is directly or indirectly related with hazardous waste generation. Urbanization and population growth are solely responsible for establishing industrial sector and generating various Hazardous Waste (HW) and concomitantly poor management practice arising adverse effect on environment and human health. As compare to other Indian state, West Bengal is not too much former in HW generation. West Bengal makes a rank of 7th in HW generation followed by Maharashtra, Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, U.P, Punjab and Andhra Pradesh. During the last 30 years, the industrial sectors in W.B have quadrupled in size, during 1995 there were only 440 HW generating Units in West Bengal which produced 129826 MTA hazardous waste but in 2011, it rose up into 609 units and it produced about 259777 MTA hazardous waste. So, the notable thing is that during a 15 year interval there increased 169 waste generating units but it produced about 129951 MTA of hazardous waste. Major chemical industries are the main sources of HW and causes of adverse effect on the environment and human health. HW from industrial sectors contains heavy metals, cyanides, pesticides, complex aromatic compounds (i.e. PCB) and other chemical which are toxic, flammable, reactive, and corrosive and have explosive properties which highly affect the surrounding environment and human health in and around he disposal sites. The main objective of present study is to highlight on the sources and components of hazardous waste in West Bengal and impacts of improper HW management on health and environment. This study is carried out based on a secondary source of data and qualitative method of research. The secondary data has been collected annual report of WBPCB, WHO’s report, research paper, article, books and so on. It has been found that excessive HW generation from various sources and communities has serious health hazards that lead to the spreading of infectious disease and environmental change.

Keywords: environmental impacts, existing HW generation and management practice, hazardous waste (HW), health impacts, recommendation and planning

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Authors: Adnan Lanjawi

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This paper is carried out to investigate the management of hazardous waste in the chemistry section which belongs to Dubai Police forensic laboratory. The chemicals are the main contributor toward the accumulation of hazardous waste in the section. This is due to the requirement to use it in analysis, such as of explosives, drugs, inorganic and fire debris cases. This leads to negative effects on the environment and to the employees’ health and safety. The research investigates the quantity of chemicals there, the labels, the storage room and equipment used. The target is to reduce the need for disposal by looking at alternative options, such as elimination, substitution and recycling. The data was collected by interviewing the top managers there who have been working in the lab more than 20 years. Also, data was collected by observing employees and how they carry out experiments. Therefore, a survey was made to assess their knowledge about the hazardous waste. The management of hazardous chemicals in the chemistry section needs to be improved. The main findings illustrate that about 110 bottles of reference substances were going to be disposed of in 2014. These bottles were bought for about 100,000 UAE Dirhams (£17,600). This means that the management of substances purchase is not organised. There is no categorisation programme in place, which makes the waste control very difficult. In addition, the findings show that chemical are segregated according to alphabetical order, whereas the efficient way is to separate them according to their nature and property. In addition, the research suggested technology and experiments to follow to reduce the need for using solvents and chemicals in the sample preparation.

Keywords: control, hazard, laboratories, waste,

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Authors: Dimphna Ezikanyi, Gloria Sakwari

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Airborne pollen and fungal spores are major triggers of allergies, and their abundance and seasonality depend on plant responses to climatic and meteorological variables. A survey of seasonal prevalence of airborne pollen and fungal spores in Nsukka, Enugu, South- East Nigeria and relationship to climatic variables were carried out from Jan-June, 2017. The aim of the study was to access climate change and variability over time in the area and their accrued influence on modern pollen and spores rain. Decadal change in climate was accessed from variables collected from meteorological centre in the study area. Airborne samples were collected monthly using a modified Tauber-like pollen samplers raised 5 ft above ground level. Aerosamples collected were subjected to acetolysis. Dominant pollen recorded were those of Poaceae, Elaeis guinensis Jacq. and Casuarina equisetifolia L. Change in weather brought by onset of rainfall evoked sporulation and dispersal of diverse spores into ambient air especially potent allergenic spores with the spores of Ovularia, Bispora, Curvularia, Nigrospora, Helminthosporium preponderant; these 'hydrophilic fungi' were abundant in the rainy season though in varying quantities. Total fungal spores correlated positively with monthly rainfall and humidity but negatively with temperature. There was a negative though not significant correlation between total pollen count and rainfall. The study revealed a strong influence of climatic variables on abundance and spatial distribution of pollen and fungal spores in the ambient atmosphere.

Keywords: allergy, fungal spores, pollen, weather parameters

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Authors: Chhabi Nigam, S. Ramakrishnan

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This paper brings out the analysis of the airborne Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) data to study the impact of Doppler centroid on Image quality and geocoding accuracy from the perspective of Stripmap mode of data acquisition. Although in Stripmap mode of data acquisition radar beam points at 90 degrees broad side (side looking), shift in the Doppler centroid is invariable due to platform motion. In-accurate estimation of Doppler centroid leads to poor image quality and image miss-registration. The effect of Doppler centroid is analyzed in this paper using multiple sets of data collected from airborne platform. Occurrences of ghost (ambiguous) targets and their power levels have been analyzed that impacts appropriate choice of PRF. Effect of aircraft attitudes (roll, pitch and yaw) on the Doppler centroid is also analyzed with the collected data sets. Various stages of the RDA (Range Doppler Algorithm) algorithm used for image formation in Stripmap mode, range compression, Doppler centroid estimation, azimuth compression, range cell migration correction are analyzed to find the performance limits and the dependence of the imaging geometry on the final image. The ability of Doppler centroid estimation to enhance the imaging accuracy for registration are also illustrated in this paper. The paper also tries to bring out the processing of low squint SAR data, the challenges and the performance limits imposed by the imaging geometry and the platform dynamics on the final image quality metrics. Finally, the effect on various terrain types, including land, water and bright scatters is also presented.

Keywords: ambiguous target, Doppler Centroid, image registration, Airborne SAR

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Authors: Peter Joseph Basil Morris, Chhabi Nigam, S. Ramakrishnan, P. Radhakrishna

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This paper brings out the analysis of the airborne Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) data using the Range Migration Algorithm (RMA) for the spotlight mode of operation. Unlike in polar format algorithm (PFA), space-variant defocusing and geometric distortion effects are mitigated in RMA since it does not assume that the illuminating wave-fronts are planar. This facilitates the use of RMA for imaging scenarios involving severe differential range curvatures enabling the imaging of larger scenes at fine resolution and at shorter ranges with low center frequencies. The RMA algorithm for the spotlight mode of SAR is analyzed in this paper using the airborne data. Pre-processing operations viz: - range de-skew and motion compensation to a line are performed on the raw data before being fed to the RMA component. Various stages of the RMA viz:- 2D Matched Filtering, Along Track Fourier Transform and Slot Interpolation are analyzed to find the performance limits and the dependence of the imaging geometry on the resolution of the final image. The ability of RMA to compensate for severe differential range curvatures in the two-dimensional spatial frequency domain are also illustrated in this paper.

Keywords: range migration algorithm, spotlight SAR, synthetic aperture radar, matched filtering, slot interpolation

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Authors: T. Rajamäki

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In clean room environment molecular contamination in very small concentrations can cause significant harm for the components and processes. This is commonly referred as airborne molecular contamination (AMC). There is a shortage of high sensitivity continuous measurement data for existence and behavior of several of these contaminants. Accordingly, in most cases correlation between concentration of harmful molecules and their effect on processes is not known. In addition, the formation and distribution of contaminating molecules are unclear. In this work sensitive optical techniques are applied in clean room facilities for investigation of concentrations, forming mechanisms and effects of contaminating molecules. Special emphasis is on reactive acid and base gases ammonia (NH3) and hydrogen fluoride (HF). They are the key chemicals in several operations taking place in clean room processes.

Keywords: AMC, clean room, concentration, reactive gas

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Authors: K. Nasir, S. Ahmad, A. Khan, H. Benkreira

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The topic of the research is to develop sustainable fire-resistant materials for vibration and acoustic damping of structure and airborne noises from sustainable recycled materials and biodegradable binders. The paper reports, methods and techniques of enhancing fire resistive, vibration and acoustic properties of building insulation materials made from natural resources like wood and recycled materials like rubber and textile waste. The structures are designed to optimize the number, size and stratification of closed (heat insulating) and open (noise insulating) pores. The samples produced are tested for their heat and noise insulating properties, including vibration damping and their structural properties (airflow resistivity, porosity, tortuosity and elastic modulus). The structural properties are then used in theoretical models to check the acoustic insulation measurements. Initial data indicate that one layer of such material can yield as much as 18 times more damping, increasing the loss factor by 18%.

Keywords: fire resistant, vibration damping, acoustic material, vibro-acoustic, thermal insulation, sustainable material, low cost materials, recycled materials, construction material

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Authors: Shigenori Togashi, Kei Takenaka

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We developed new processes which can collect and detect rapidly airborne pathogens such as the avian flu virus for the pandemic prevention. The fluorescence antibody technique is known as one of high-sensitive detection methods for viruses, but this needs up to a few hours to bind sufficient fluorescence dyes to viruses for detection. In this paper, we developed a mist-labeling can detect substitution viruses in a short time to improve the binding rate of fluorescent dyes and substitution viruses by the micro reaction process. Moreover, we developed the rapid detection system with the above 'mist labeling'. The detection system set with a sampling bag collecting patient’s breath and a cartridge can detect automatically pathogens within 10 minutes.

Keywords: viruses, sampler, mist, detection, fluorescent dyes, microreaction

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Authors: Ammar Ayad Issa Al-Rifaie, Zuhreya Muazu, Maysam Ali Abdulwahid, Dermot Gleeson

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The aim of this audit was to examine the efficiency of alcohol history documentation and screening for hazardous drinkers at the Medical Admission Unit (MAU) of Northern General Hospital (NGH), Sheffield, to identify any potential for enhancing clinical practice. Data were collected from medical clerking sheets, ICE system and directly from 82 patients by three junior medical doctors using both CAGE questionnaire and AUDIT-C tool for newly admitted patients to MAU in NGH, in the period between January and March 2015. Alcohol consumption was documented in around two-third of the patient sample and this was documented fairly accurately by health care professionals. Some used subjective words such as 'social drinking' in the alcohol units’ section of the history. CAGE questionnaire was applied to only four patients and none of the patients had documented advice, education or referral to an alcohol liaison team. AUDIT-C tool had identified 30.4%, while CAGE 10.9%, of patients admitted to the NGH MAU as hazardous drinkers. The amount of alcohol the patient consumes positively correlated with the score of AUDIT-C (Pearson correlation 0.83). Re-audit is planned to be carried out after integrating AUDIT-C tool as labels in the notes and presenting a brief teaching session to junior doctors. Alcohol misuse screening is not adequately undertaken and no appropriate action is being offered to hazardous drinkers. CAGE questionnaire is poorly applied to patients and when satisfactory and adequately used has low sensitivity to detect hazardous drinkers in comparison with AUDIT-C tool. Re-audit of alcohol screening practice after introducing AUDIT-C tool in clerking sheets (as labels) is required to compare the findings and conclude the audit cycle.

Keywords: alcohol screening, AUDIT-C, CAGE, hazardous drinking

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Authors: Ashish Agarwal, Vaibhav Singh

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Harmful emissions from oil and gas processing facilities have long remained a matter of concern for governments and environmentalists throughout the world. This paper analyses Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) gas processing plant in Hazira, Gujarat, India. It is the largest gas-processing complex in the country designed to process 41MMSCMD sour natural gas & associated sour condensate. The complex, sprawling over an area of approximate 705 hectares is the mother plant for almost all industries at Hazira and enroute Hazira Bijapur Jagdishpur pipeline. Various sources of pollution from each unit starting from Gas Terminal to Dew Point Depression unit and Caustic Wash unit along the processing chain were examined with the help of different emission data obtained from ONGC. Pollution discharged to the environment was classified into Water, Air, Hazardous Waste and Solid (Non-Hazardous) Waste so as to analyze each one of them efficiently. To protect air environment, Sulphur recovery unit along with automatic ambient air quality monitoring stations, automatic stack monitoring stations among numerous practices were adopted. To protect water environment different effluent treatment plants were used with due emphasis on aquaculture of the nearby area. Hazira plant has obtained the authorization for handling and disposal of five types of hazardous waste. Most of the hazardous waste were sold to authorized recyclers and the rest was given to Gujarat Pollution Control Board authorized vendors. Non-Hazardous waste was also handled with an overall objective of zero negative impact on the environment. The effect of methods adopted is evident from emission data of the plant which was found to be well under Gujarat Pollution Control Board limits.

Keywords: sulphur recovery unit, effluent treatment plant, hazardous waste, sour gas

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Authors: D. Sun, T. F. Lu, A. Zander, M. Trinkle

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This paper investigates the potential use of airborne ultrasonic phased arrays for imaging in outdoor environments as a means of overcoming the limitations experienced by kinect sensors, which may fail to work in the outdoor environments due to the oversaturation of the infrared photo diodes. Ultrasonic phased arrays have been well studied for static media, yet there appears to be no comparable examination in the literature of the impact of a flowing medium on the focusing behaviour of near field focused ultrasonic arrays. This paper presents a method for predicting the sound pressure fields produced by a single ultrasound element or an ultrasonic phased array influenced by airflows. The approach can be used to determine the actual focal point location of an array exposed in a known flow field. From the presented simulation results based upon this model, it can be concluded that uniform flows in the direction orthogonal to the acoustic propagation have a noticeable influence on the sound pressure field, which is reflected in the twisting of the steering angle of the array. Uniform flows in the same direction as the acoustic propagation have negligible influence on the array. For an array impacted by a turbulent flow, determining the location of the focused sound field becomes difficult due to the irregularity and continuously changing direction and the speed of the turbulent flow. In some circumstances, ultrasonic phased arrays impacted by turbulent flows may not be capable of producing a focused sound field.

Keywords: airborne, airflow, focused sound field, ultrasonic phased array

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Authors: Ayman M. Arfaj, Jose Lauro M. Llamas, Saleh Y Qahtani

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Sulfur Loading Operation (SLO) is an operation that poses risk of exposure to toxic gases such as Hydrogen Sulfid and Sulfur Dioxide during molten sulfur loading operation. In this operation molten sulfur is loaded into a truck tanker in a liquid state and the temperature of the tanker must maintain liquid sulfur within a 43-degree range — between 266 degrees and 309 degrees Fahrenheit in order for safe loading and unloading to occur. Accordingly, in this study, the e potential risk of occupational exposure to the airborne toxic gases was assessed at three sulfur loading facilities. The concentrations of toxic airborne substances such as Hydrogen Sulfide (H2S) and Sulfur Dioxide (SO2), were monitored during operations at the different locations within the sulfur loading operation facilities. In addition to extensive real-time monitoring, over one hundred and fifty samples were collected and analysed at internationally accredited laboratories. The concentrations of H2S, and SO2 were all found to be well below their respective occupational exposure limits. Very low levels of H2S account for the odours observed intermittingly during mixing and application operations but do not pose a considerable health risk and hence these levels are considered a nuisance. These results were comparable to those reported internationally. Aside from observing the usual general safe work practices such as wearing safety glasses, there are no specific occupational health related concerns at the examined sulfur loading facilities.

Keywords: exposure assessment, sulfur loading operation, health risk study, molten sulfur, toxic airborne substances, air contaminants monitoring

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Authors: D. Venu, N. V. Koteswara Rao

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Space – time adaptive processing (STAP) is an effective tool for detecting a moving target in spaceborne or airborne radar systems. Since airborne passive radar systems utilize broadcast, navigation and excellent communication signals to perform various surveillance tasks and also has attracted significant interest from the distinct past, therefore the need of the hour is to have cost effective systems as compared to conventional active radar systems. Moreover, requirements of small number of secondary samples for effective clutter suppression in bi-static passive radar offer abundant illuminator resources for passive surveillance radar systems. This paper presents a framework for incorporating knowledge sources directly in the space-time beam former of airborne adaptive radars. STAP algorithm for clutter mitigation for passive bi-static radar has better quantitation of the reduction in sample size thereby amalgamating the earlier data bank with existing radar data sets. Also, we proposed a novel method to estimate the clutter matrix and perform STAP for efficient clutter suppression based on small sample size. Furthermore, the effectiveness of the proposed algorithm is verified using MATLAB simulations in order to validate STAP algorithm for passive bi-static radar. In conclusion, this study highlights the importance for various applications which augments traditional active radars using cost-effective measures.

Keywords: bistatic radar, clutter, covariance matrix passive radar, STAP

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Authors: Joon Y. Lee, Seung H. Shin, Ho H. Chun, Wan K. Jo

Abstract:

Poly vinyl acetate (PVA)-based titania (TiO2)–carbon nanotube composite nanofibers (PVA-TCCNs) with various PVA-to-solvent ratios and PVA-based TiO2 composite nanofibers (PVA-TN) were synthesized using an electrospinning process, followed by thermal treatment. The photocatalytic activities of these nanofibers in the degradation of airborne monocyclic aromatics under visible-light irradiation were examined. This study focuses on the application of these photocatalysts to the degradation of the target compounds at sub-part-per-million indoor air concentrations. The characteristics of the photocatalysts were examined using scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, ultraviolet-visible spectroscopy, and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy. For all the target compounds, the PVA-TCCNs showed photocatalytic degradation efficiencies superior to those of the reference PVA-TN. Specifically, the average photocatalytic degradation efficiencies for benzene, toluene, ethyl benzene, and o-xylene (BTEX) obtained using the PVA-TCCNs with a PVA-to-solvent ratio of 0.3 (PVA-TCCN-0.3) were 11%, 59%, 89%, and 92%, respectively, whereas those observed using PVA-TNs were 5%, 9%, 28%, and 32%, respectively. PVA-TCCN-0.3 displayed the highest photocatalytic degradation efficiency for BTEX, suggesting the presence of an optimal PVA-to-solvent ratio for the synthesis of PVA-TCCNs. The average photocatalytic efficiencies for BTEX decreased from 11% to 4%, 59% to 18%, 89% to 37%, and 92% to 53%, respectively, when the flow rate was increased from 1.0 to 4.0 L min1. In addition, the average photocatalytic efficiencies for BTEX increased 11% to ~0%, 59% to 3%, 89% to 7%, and 92% to 13% , respectively, when the input concentration increased from 0.1 to 1.0 ppm. The prepared PVA-TCCNs were effective for the purification of airborne aromatics at indoor concentration levels, particularly when the operating conditions were optimized.

Keywords: mixing ratio, nanofiber, polymer, reference photocatalyst

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Authors: Ziad Abdeldayem, Jakub Markiewicz, Kunal Kansara, Laura Edwards

Abstract:

Airborne Laser Scanning (ALS) is one of the main technologies for generating high-resolution digital terrain models (DTMs). DTMs are crucial to several applications, such as topographic mapping, flood zone delineation, geographic information systems (GIS), hydrological modelling, spatial analysis, etc. Laser scanning system generates irregularly spaced three-dimensional cloud of points. Raw ALS data are mainly ground points (that represent the bare earth) and non-ground points (that represent buildings, trees, cars, etc.). Removing all the non-ground points from the raw data is referred to as filtering. Filtering heavily forested areas is considered a difficult and challenging task as the canopy stops laser pulses from reaching the terrain surface. This research presents an approach for removing non-ground points from raw ALS data in densely forested areas. Smoothing splines are exploited to interpolate and fit the noisy ALS data. The presented filter utilizes a weight function to allocate weights for each point of the data. Furthermore, unlike most of the methods, the presented filtering algorithm is designed to be automatic. Three different forested areas in the United Kingdom are used to assess the performance of the algorithm. The results show that the generated DTMs from the filtered data are accurate (when compared against reference terrain data) and the performance of the method is stable for all the heavily forested data samples. The average root mean square error (RMSE) value is 0.35 m.

Keywords: airborne laser scanning, digital terrain models, filtering, forested areas

Procedia PDF Downloads 115

Authors: Olugbenga S. Alebiosu, Olusola H. Adekanmbi, Oluwatoyin T. Ogundipe

Abstract:

Pollen and spores have been identified as major airborne bio-particles inducing respiratory disorders such as asthma, allergic rhinitis and atopic dermatitis among hypersensitive individuals. An aeropalynological study was conducted within a one year sampling period with a view to investigating the monthly depositional rate of atmospheric pollen and spores; influence of the immediate vegetation on airborne pollen distribution; allergenic potentials of dominant atmospheric pollen types at selected study locations in Bauchi and Taraba states, Northwestern Nigeria. A tauber-like pollen trap was employed in aerosampling with the sampler positioned at a height of 5 feet above the ground, followed by a monthly collection of the recipient solution for the sampling period. The collected samples were subjected to acetolysis treatment, examined microscopically with the identification of pollen grains and spores using reference materials and published photomicrographs. Plants within the surrounding vegetation were enumerated. Crude protein contents extracted from pollen types found to be commonly dominant at both study locations; Senna siamea, Terminalia cattapa, Panicum maximum and Zea mays were used to sensitize Musmusculus. Histopathological studies of bronchi and lung sections from certain dead M.musculus in the test groups was conducted. Blood samples were collected from the pre-orbital vein of M.musculus and processed for serological and haematological (differential and total white blood cell counts) studies. ELISA was used in determining the levels of serological parameters: IgE and cytokines (TNF-, IL-5, and IL-13). Statistical significance was observed in the correlation between the levels of serological and haematological parameters elicited by each test group, differences between the levels of serological and haematological parameters elicited by each test group and those of the control, as well as at varying sensitization periods. The results from this study revealed dominant airborne pollen types across the study locations; Syzygiumguineense, Tridaxprocumbens, Elaeisguineensis, Mimosa sp., Borreria sp., Terminalia sp., Senna sp. and Poaceae. Nephrolepis sp., Pteris sp. and a trilete fern also produced spores. This study also revealed that some of the airborne pollen types were produced by local plants at the study locations. Bronchi sections of M.musculus after first and second sensitizations, as well as lung section after first sensitization with Senna siamea, showed areas of necrosis. Statistical significance was recorded in the correlation between the levels of some serological and haematological parameters produced by each test group and those of the control, as well as at certain sensitization periods. The study revealed some candidate pollen allergens at the study locations allergy sufferers and also established a complexity of interaction between immune cells, IgE and cytokines at varied periods of mice sensitization and forming a paradigm of human immune response to different pollen allergens. However, it is expedient that further studies should be conducted on these candidate pollen allergens for their allergenicity potential in humans within their immediate environment.

Keywords: airborne, hypersensitive, mus musculus, pollen allergens, respiratory, tauber-like

Procedia PDF Downloads 107

Authors: Adrian Kong, William Chang, Rolando Valdes, Alec Rodriguez, Roberto Miki

Abstract:

The Pneumask consists of a custom snorkel-specific adapter that attaches a snorkel-port of the mask to a 3D-printed filter. This full-face snorkel mask was designed for use as personal protective equipment (PPE) during the COVID-19 pandemic when there was a widespread shortage of PPE for medical personnel. Various clinical validation tests have been conducted, including the sealing capability of the mask, filter performance, CO2 buildup, and clinical usability. However, data regarding the filter efficiencies of Pneumask and multiple filter types have not been determined. Using an experimental system, we evaluated the filtration efficiency across various masks and filters during inhalation. Eighteen combinations of respirator models (5 P100 FFRs, 4 Dolfino Masks) and filters (2091, 7093, 7093CN, BB50T) were evaluated for their exposure to airborne particles sized 0.3 - 10.0 microns using an electronic airborne particle counter. All respirator model combinations provided similar performance levels for 1.0-micron, 3.0-micron, 5.0-micron, 10.0-microns, with the greatest differences in the 0.3-micron and 0.5-micron range. All models provided expected performances against all particle sizes, with Class P100 respirators providing the highest performance levels across all particle size ranges. In conclusion, the modified snorkel mask has the potential to protect providers who care for patients with COVID-19 from increased airborne particle exposure.

Keywords: COVID-19, PPE, mask, filtration, efficiency

Procedia PDF Downloads 139