Increasing seat belt use through PI&E and enforcement: The Thumbs Up campaign

Campaigns to increase seat belt use have been effective in controlled environments, in small geographic areas, in primary enforcement states, and when conducted in conjunction with the enactment of seat belt legislation. The Thumbs Up project was undertaken to determine if belt use could be facilitated in less advantageous conditions. A 3-month campaign to increase seat belt use was conducted in two sites, each consisting of two Florida counties. At its conclusion, the Thumbs Up project did not yield an overall increase in seat belt use across the two sites. However, observed seat belt use and the number of seat belt citations issued increased significantly in one site. The results are discussed in terms of the two components necessary for a successful campaign: public information and education, and enforcement. Further, recommendations for conducting successful community-based seat belt interventions are offered.     

Kinetics and equilibrium adsorption study of lead(II) onto the low cost adsorbent—Eupatorium adenophorum spreng

Adsorption of Pb(II) ions from aqueous solution onto a low cost adsorbent—the Eupatorium adenophorum spreng has been investigated to evaluate the effects of initial lead ion concentration, contact time, pH and temperature on the removal of Pb(II) systematically. The optimal pH value for Pb(II) adsorption onto the E. adenophorum spreng was found to be 5.0. Thermodynamic parameters such as standard Gibbs free energy (ΔG°), standard enthalpy (ΔH°), and standard entropy (ΔS°) were evaluated by applying the van’t Hoff equation, which describes the dependence of equilibrium constant on temperature. The thermodynamics of Pb(II) adsorption onto the E. adenophorum spreng indicated that the adsorption was spontaneous and endothermic. Langmuir and Freundlich isotherms were used to analyze the equilibrium data at different temperatures and the equilibrium data were found to fit Freundlich isotherm equation better than Langmuir isotherm. The adsorption was analyzed using pseudo-second-order kinetic models.