Lead particle size and its association with firing conditions and range maintenance: implications for treatment

Six firing range soils were analyzed, representing different environments, firing conditions, and maintenance practices. The particle size distribution and lead (Pb) concentration in each soil fraction were determined for samples obtained from the backstop berms. The main factors that were found to influence Pb fragment size were the type of soil used to construct the berms and the type of weapon fired. The firing of high velocity weapons, i.e., rifles, onto highly angular soils induced significant fragmentation of the bullets and/or pulverization of the soil itself. This resulted in the accumulation of Pb in the finer soil fractions and the spread of Pb contamination beyond the vicinity of the backstop berm. Conversely, the use of clay as backstop and the use of low velocity pistols proved to be favorable for soil clean-up and range maintenance, since Pb was mainly present as large metallic fragments that can be recovered by a simple screening process. Other factors that played important roles in Pb particle size distribution were soil chemistry, firing distance, and maintenance practices, such as the use of water spray for dust suppression and deflectors prior to impact. Overall, coarse Pb particles provide much easier and more cost-effective maintenance, soil clean-up, and remediation via physical separation. Fine Pb particles release Pb more easily, pose an airborne Pb hazard, and require the application of stabilization/solidification treatment methods. Thus, to ensure sustainable firing range operations by means of cost-effective design, maintenance, and clean-up, especially when high velocity weapons are used, the above mentioned factors should be carefully considered.     

Personal deposited dose and its influencing factors at several Greek sites: an analysis in respect to seasonal and diurnal variations

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - The deposited dose in the human respiratory tract and its influencing factors were investigated for 8 urban/suburban locations within Greek cities. A...     

Future heat-related climate change impacts on tourism industry in Cyprus

Tourism is a vital sector of Cyprus economy, attracting millions of tourists every year and providing economic growth and employment for the country. The aim of this study was to investigate the impacts of projected climate change in the tourism industry in Cyprus (Republic of Cyprus) using both “Tourism Climate Index” (TCI) and “Beach Climate Index” (BCI). TCI refers to tourism activities mainly related to sightseeing, nature-based tourism, and religious tourism etc., while BCI represents beach tourism that constitutes 85 % of tourism activities in Cyprus. The projections of climate change impacts in tourism are performed for 2071–2100 period, using regional climate model output employing the A1B greenhouse gas emissions scenario. The 1961–1990 period is used as the control run to compare the respective results of the future projections. The significant warming anticipated in the distant future (increases in annual and summer temperatures close to 4 °C) will have adverse impacts on Cyprus tourism industry regarding sightseeing tourism. TCI results for the distant future period show only acceptable conditions for general tourism activities during summer in contrast with the good/very good conditions in the present climate. Conversely, this type of tourism seems to be benefited in shoulder seasons, i.e., during spring and autumn; TCI and hence tourist activities improve in the distant future in relation to the present climate. On the other hand, concerning beach tourism, future projections indicate that it will not be negatively affected by future climate change and any changes will be positive.     

Monitoring particulate matter levels and climate conditions in a Greek sheep and goat livestock building

Atmospheric pollutants from livestock operations influence air quality inside livestock buildings and the air exhausted from them. The climate that prevails inside the building affects human and animal health and welfare, as well as productivity, while emissions from the building contribute to environmental pollution. The aim of this study was to examine the variation of two climatic parameters (namely temperature and relative humidity) and the levels of particulate matter of different sizes (PM10-PM2.5-PM1), as well as the relationships between them, inside a typical Greek naturally ventilated livestock building that hosts mainly sheep. The concentration of particles was recorded during a 45-day period (27/11-10/1), while temperature and relative humidity were observed during an almost 1-year period. The analysis revealed that the variation of outdoor weather conditions significantly influenced the indoor environment, as temperature and relative humidity inside the building varied in accordance to the outside climate conditions. Temperature remained higher indoors than outdoors during the winter and extremely low values were not recorded inside the building. However, the tolerable relative humidity levels recommended by the International Commission of Agricultural Engineering (CIGR) were fulfilled only in 47% of the hours during the almost 1-year period that was examined. This fact indicates that although temperature was satisfactorily controlled, the control of relative humidity was deficient. The concentration of particulate matter was increased during the cold winter days due to poor ventilation. The maximum daily average value of PM10, PM2.5 and PM1 concentration equaled to 363, 61 and 30?μg/m(3) respectively. The concentration of the coarse particles was strongly influenced by the farming activities that were daily taking place in the building, the dust resuspension being considered as the dominant source. A significant part of the fine particles were secondary, which the production of could be attributed to an increase in relative humidity levels. It is concluded that measures have to be adopted in order to achieve sufficient ventilation and to reduce particulate matter levels.     

Prediction of ecotoxicological behaviour of chemicals: Relationship between physico-chemical properties and bioaccumulation of organic chemicals in the mussel Mytilus edulis

The analysis presented in this paper shows that water solubility as well as the n-octanol/water partition coefficient are useful indicators of the tendency of organic chemicals to bioaccumulate. It is suggested that these physico-chemical data be used as screening test for organic chemical bioaccumulation in aquatic organisms, such as the mussel $\text{Mytilus edulis}$.     

Photo-Induced OH reactions of naphthalene and its oxidation products on SiO2

The photo-induced degradation of naphthalene, 1,4-naphthoquinone, 1-naphthol and 1-NO₂ naphthalene, adsorbed on silica gel, and with the addition of nitrogenous air pollutants e.g. NO₂ (as KNO₂) was investigated. Results indicate that compounds adsorbed onto a solid carrier are degraded when irradiated with UV light (λ > 290 nm) in the presence of nitrites. The key species initiating the naphthalene degradation is the OH-radical which is generated through the photolysis of NO₂. Reaction products identified were 2-formyl-cinnamaldehyde, 1,4-naphthoquinone, nitronaphthol, o-phthaldialdehyde, phthalide and nitronaphthalene. A mass balance between 40–50% was achieved. Under the same irradiation conditions, 1-NO₂ naphthalene is mainly degraded by direct photolysis while degradation of 1-naphthol and 1,4-naphthoquinone proceeds via the reaction with OH-radicals. Identified products were hydroxy-nitro-nitroso- and quinones compounds.     

The use of tailor-made acidic deep eutectic solvents for preparation of quercetin-enriched extracts from onion solid wastes

The current examination dealt with the development of a methodology to produce quercetin, a multifunctional bio-flavonoid, by designing task-specific, highly acidic deep eutectic solvents, based on glycerol and natural organic acids. The purpose was to achieve a simultaneous hydrolysis of spiraeoside, the major quercetin glycoconjugate occurring in onion solid wastes, and quercetin extraction. After an initial performance screening, the combination of glycerol/oxalic acid was identified as the highest-performing system, and further investigation showed that the most efficacious molar ratio was glycerol/oxalic acid 3:1. Further study of hydrolysis/extractions conditions suggested 30 min, at 130°C, to be the best operating conditions, giving the highest yield of 19.65 mg quercetin per grams of dry mass. The extract obtained under these conditions displayed significantly enhanced antiradical activity, compared to control extracts prepared with water or aqueous ethanol. On the other hand, results on the ferric-reducing power were rather contradictory. It is proposed that such a methodology may be implemented to valorize onion solid wastes, for the production of extracts significantly enriched in quercetin, with increased antiradical properties.