2,4-Dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4-D) photodegradation on WO3-TiO2-SBA-15 nanostructured composite

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - A current environmental problem is the uncontrolled use of various pesticides that are harmful to the environment and public health. The herbicide...     

Discrete event simulation to aid decision-making and mitigation in solid waste management

This article aims to evaluate municipal solid waste (MSW) management schemes in order to promote sustainability and eco-efficiency, core elements in global mitigation strategies in both public and private policies. A discrete event simulation (DES) approach was used to integrate the economic, environmental, and social aspects related to aseptic carton packages (ACP) in Itajuba, Brazil. The simulated scenarios consider three alternatives for disposing ACP: landfills, recycling, and incineration with energy recovery. According to our findings, incineration alternatives are preferred from an eco-efficiency perspective, given the potential greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions reductions and due to the possibility of energy recover, which reinforces the contribution of this technology to promote sustainability as largely found in the international literature. Given the context of MSW management in Brazil, this represents a significant opportunity to increase the effectiveness of mitigation strategies adopted in the country. Taking into account that this is by far the least applied technology, the authors strongly advocate that global strategies for mitigation consider different approaches to integrate carbon dioxide (CO₂) emission reductions related to the entire MSW management system and its alternatives, thus advancing from a waste disposal-oriented system to a life cycle–oriented system.

     

Book reviews

Cost Benefit Analysis of Environmental Change

Per‐Olov Johansson

Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, 1993, 232 pp., £13.95

Computerised Environmental Modelling: A Practical Introduction using Excel

J. Hardisty, D. M. Taylor & S. E. Metcalfe

Chichester, Wiley, 1993, 204 pp., £14.95

Keeping Pace with Science and Engineering: Case Studies in Environmental Regulation

Washington DC, US National Academy of Engineering, 1993

World Without End: Economics, Environment and Sustainable Development

D. W. Pearce & J. J. Warford

Oxford University Press, New York, 1993, 440 pp., £35.95     

Factor structure of the transformational leadership model in human service teams

The purpose of this study was to examine the factor structure of the transformational leadership model in human service teams. As the nature of this work environment mandates certain management‐by‐exception practices, patterns of correlations between perceptions of active and passive management‐by‐exception behaviors and transformational, transactional, and laissez‐faire leadership were of interest. 236 leaders and 620 subordinates from 54 mental health teams completed the Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire, form 8Y. Results suggest that active and passive management‐by‐exception factors are independent constructs. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

COMPARATIVE STUDY OF OPTIMIZATION TECHNIQUES FOR IRRIGATION PROJECT PLANNING1

ABSTRACT: This study presents three optimization techniques for on‐farm irrigation scheduling in irrigation project planning: namely the genetic algorithm, simulated annealing and iterative improvement methods. The three techniques are applied to planning a 394.6 ha irrigation project in the town of Delta, Utah, for optimizing economic profits, simulating water demand, and estimating the crop area percentages with specific water supply and planted area constraints. The comparative optimization results for the 394.6 ha irrigated project from the genetic algorithm, simulated annealing, and iterative improvement methods are as follows: (1) the seasonal maximum net benefits are $113,826, $111,494, and $105,444 per season, respectively; and (2) the seasonal water demands are 3.03*10³ m³, 3.0*10³ m³, and 2.92*10³ m³ per season, respectively. This study also determined the most suitable four parameters of the genetic algorithm method for the Delta irrigated project to be: (1) the number of generations equals 800, (2) population size equals 50, (3) probability of crossover equals 0.6, and (4) probability of mutation equals 0.02. Meanwhile, the most suitable three parameters of simulated annealing method for the Delta irrigated project are: (1) initial temperature equals 1,000, (2) number of moves equal 90, and (3) cooling rate equals 0.95.