Determination of specific gravity of municipal solid waste

This investigation was conducted to evaluate experimental determination of specific gravity (G_s) of municipal solid waste (MSW). Water pycnometry, typically used for testing soils was adapted for testing MSW using a large flask with 2000 mL capacity and specimens with 100–350 g masses. Tests were conducted on manufactured waste samples prepared using US waste constituent components; fresh wastes obtained prior and subsequent to compaction at an MSW landfill; and wastes obtained from various depths at the same landfill. Factors that influence specific gravity were investigated including waste particle size, compaction, and combined decomposition and stress history. The measured average specific gravities were 1.377 and 1.530 for as-prepared/uncompacted and compacted manufactured wastes, respectively; 1.072 and 1.258 for uncompacted and compacted fresh wastes, respectively; and 2.201 for old wastes. The average organic content and degree of decomposition were 77.2% and 0%, respectively for fresh wastes and 22.8% and 88.3%, respectively for old wastes. The G_s increased with decreasing particle size, compaction, and increasing waste age. For fresh wastes, reductions in particle size and compaction caused occluded intraparticle pores to be exposed and waste particles to be deformed resulting in increases in specific gravity. For old wastes, the high G_s resulted from loss of biodegradable components that have low G_s as well as potential access to previously occluded pores and deformation of particles due to both degradation processes and applied mechanical stresses. The G_s was correlated to the degree of decomposition with a linear relationship. Unlike soils, the G_s for MSW was not unique, but varied in a landfill environment due both to physical/mechanical processes and biochemical processes. Specific gravity testing is recommended to be conducted not only using representative waste composition, but also using representative compaction, stress, and degradation states.     

Financial and economic factors affecting the lignite prices in Turkey: An analysis of Soma and Can lignites

Using a simultaneous equation econometric model based on yearly data between 1997 and 2006 for the Aegean Lignite Enterprise this study examines factors that affect the lignite price in Turkey. The Aegean Lignite Enterprise produces and sells the lignite of Soma and Can and their data reflect the general Turkish situation. The results suggest that (1) lignite prices sold to the industry increase (decrease) depending on the decrease (increase) in the industrial production and (2) total electricity production and electricity price are the most important factors that potential investors and related persons have to take into consideration for the pricing of lignite in the thermal power plant market.     

Polychlorinated biphenyls and organochlorine pesticides in amniotic fluids of pregnant women in south-central Turkey†

The concentrations of organochlorine pesticides (OCPs) and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) were determined in amniotic fluid of 200 pregnant women from the Cukurova region of Turkey. The concentrations of OCPs [hexachlorocyclohexane (HCH), hexachlorobenzene (HCB), dichlorodiphenyl trichloroethane (p,p′-DDT), and various metabolites], and different PCB congeners (28, 52, 101, 118, 138, 153, 180) were determined by gas chromatography with electron capture detection as follows: HCB 6.6 ± 4.7, ΣHCH 21.6 ± 14.2, ΣDDT 12.5 ± 7.5, and ΣPCBs 74.0 ± 54 ng mL^?1. Correlations of maternal or gestational age and levels of OCPs and PCBs were not significant. The levels of these organochlorine compounds (OCs) were below detection limit for 5% of the samples, 80% contained more than one OC. This study illustrates that prenatal exposure of a fetus to OCs is prevalent in the Cukurova region.     

Cyber international relations as an integrated system

The purpose of this paper is to conceptualize the hitherto separate domains of Cyberspace and International Relations into an integrated socio-technical system that we jointly call the cyber International Relations (Cyber-IR) system and to identify and analyze its emergent properties utilizing the methods common to science and engineering systems adapted here for the social sciences. Our work is an exploration in both theory and methodology. This paper (a) identifies the actors and functions in the core systems, Cyberspace, and IR, (b) disambiguates system boundary, (c) creates a design structure matrix (DSM), a matrix of the interdependencies among functions of actors, (d) analyzes DSM qualitatively to show multiple interdependent and heterogeneous Cyber-IR properties, and (e) analyzes quantitatively the differential importance of core functions as well as the impact of actor attributes on influence in Cyber-IR. This work forms a baseline for further understanding of the nature of the heterogeneous influences of the various actors and the various outcomes that could result from it.     

The bird species of Kumasir lake (Kahramanmaras-Turkey) and a view of environmental ethics on sustainable wetland management

Kumasir lake is located next to towns of Donuklu and Fatih, nine km west of Kahramanmaras city center the region of east Mediterranean, Turkey This lake is of crucial importance from the point of native and immigrant birds. We located 17 birdspecies in this area during our observations carried out in the spring and autumn of 2005-2006. These were Ciconia ciconia L., Anas platyrhynchos L., Accipiter nisus L., Accipiter brevipes L., Fulica atra L., Columba palumbus L., Merops apiaster L., Upupa epops L., Alauda arvensis L., Motacilla flava L., Turdus merula L., Acrocephalus scirpaceus L., Regulus regulus L., Garrulus glandarius L., Corvus corax L., Fringilla coelebs L., Hirundo rustica L.. Among observed 17 species; 6 of them were immigrant and remaining 11 of them were native birds. Kumasir lake is surrounded by wetland of Amik and Gavur lake. Since it was greatly dried, it was transformed to farmland. Consequently the birds lost most of theirnests and settlements. However not taken in the care of environmental ethic values, the wastewaters of the villages drain to lake reservoir; herbicides and insecticides used for agriculture are polluting the water reeds have been burned, the lake's reeds are getting dry by the irrigation for the farmland. So, the wetland ecosystem is being affected negatively by these factors. On the other hand, the birds are exposed to illegal and unlawful hunting. For this reasons, this lake must be taken into a management regime of sustainable wetland (protection profiting balance) and used techniques of participation planning via the process of sustainable natural resources and planning.     

Retro-techno-economic evaluation of acetic acid production using cotton stalk as feedstock

In value-added chemical industries, use of agricultural wastes as raw materials remains to be a major challenge in commercialization due to lack of competitiveness with respect to petrochemical processes. This work presents the techno-economic analysis of a novel bioprocessing plant converting 356,400 MT/year cotton stalks into 147,000 MT/year acetic acid. A production scheme integrating lignin separation with the main bioconversion stages has been proposed. Techno-economic assessment was performed through economic feasibility and retro-techno-economic analysis (RTEA) methods. The RTEA method has been extended to include the estimation of research and development funding for improving economic feasibility. Carbon offset of the proposed technology has been estimated and carbon credit results have been incorporated into the economic feasibility metrics.     

Synthesis, physicochemical characterizations and catalytic performance of Pd/carbon-zeolite and Pd/carbon-CeO2 nanocatalysts used for total oxidation of xylene at low temperatures

In this work, xylene removal from waste gas streams was investigated via catalytic oxidation over Pd/carbon-zeolite and Pd/carbon-CeO₂ nanocatalysts. Activated carbon was obtained from pine cone chemically activated using ZnCl₂ and modified by H₃PO₄. Natural zeolite of clinoptilolite was modified by acid treatment with HCl, while nano-ceria was synthesized via redox method. Mixed supports of carbon-zeolite and carbonceria were prepared and palladium was dispersed over them via impregnation method. The prepared samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), Brunauer-Emmett-Teller surface area (BET), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and thermogravimetric (TG) techniques. Characterization of nanocatalysts revealed a good morphology with an average particle size in a nano range, and confirmed the formation of nano-ceria with an average crystallite size below 60 nm. BET analysis indicated a considerable surface area for catalysts (～1000 m²·g^?1). FTIR patterns demonstrated that the surface groups of synthesized catalysts are in good agreement with the patterns of materials applied in catalyst synthesis. The performance of catalysts was assessed in a low-pressure catalytic oxidation pilot in the temperature range of 100° C-250°C. According to the reaction data, the synthesized catalysts have been shown to be so advantageous in the removal of volatile organic compounds (VOCs), representing high catalytic performance of 98% for the abatement of xylene at 250°C. Furthermore, a reaction network is proposed for catalytic oxidation of xylene over nanocatalysts.     

ECO-design of reuse and recycling networks by multi-objective optimization

An ECO-optimized reuse of process liquors addresses the financial gain and the effective use of resources. In processes that have a potential for process liquor recovery, the minimization of both economic and environmental burdens can be realised by an ECO-optimal design of reuse and recycling network (RRN).In this paper, a procedure for synthesizing such an RRN for a metal finishing process is investigated. The simultaneous analysis of environmental impact sensitivity (SAEIS) based on a superstructure approach, combined with multi-objective optimization is performed by mixed-integer nonlinear programming (MINLP). This allows an “eco–eco” trade-off i.e. total annualized cost and environmental impacts are minimized simultaneously. By varying the weighting factor, different RRN alternatives were generated. A replacement of the standard and closed-loop system by these solutions, even for the environmentally friendliest case, yielded a reasonable cost saving on raw material's inputs.