Reliable method for prediction of the flash point of various classes of amines on the basis of some molecular moieties for safety measures in industrial processes

This work presents a novel, reliable and simple method of estimating the flash point of various types of flammable amines, which are important for safety measures in industrial processes. Different amines include aliphatic amines such as primary, secondary, tertiary and cyclic amines as well as aromatic amines and hetero arenes containing nitrogen heteroatom. The proposed correlation is based on the contribution of some specific molecular moieties and functional groups, which can easily be used for any types of amines. Intermolecular forces are important in the new method, which are counted by two increasing and decreasing parameters. The root mean square (rms) deviation is 18 K for different classes of amines including 133 diverse compounds. The estimated flash points have been compared with one of the best available predictive methods, which gives much lower value of the rms deviation.     

Safety performance functions with measurement errors in traffic volume

One of the most common and important predictors in safety performance functions (SPFs) is traffic volume which is known to be measured with uncertainty. Such measurement errors (ME) can attenuate the respective predictors’ effect and also increase dispersion. This paper proposes an approach which involves the use of a ME model based on traffic flow time series data. The model is used in conjunction with the negative binomial SPF to circumvent the bias in predicting the aggregate number of accidents during the time period under study. The proposed approach (denoted by MENB), was compared with the traditional negative binomial (NB) technique by way of Monte Carlo simulation. Furthermore, both approaches were applied to two datasets corresponding to 131 and 130 road segments in British Columbia. The full Bayes method was utilized for parameter estimation, performance evaluation and inference through the use of Markov Chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) techniques. The simulation results showed that MENB has outperformed NB when large measurement errors are present. The goodness-of-fit statistics showed that MENB has provided a slightly better fit to the data. However, in the presence of measurement errors, the NB has underestimated the predicted number of accidents for heavy traffic on long road segments and vice versa. The use of MENB is justified when the variance in volume between years is large otherwise both approaches yield comparable results.     

Influence of tourism,governance, and foreign direct investment on energy consumption and CO2 emissions: a panel analysis of Muslim countries

The empirical linkages from tourism, governance, and FDI have been quantified on CO₂ emission and energy use over 2002–2014 for a panel of 13 Muslim countries. To this end, we have examined the data for cross-sectional dependence (CD) and panel heterogeneity and employed panel algorithms, which account for both CD and panel heterogeneity. The results from Pedroni, Westerlund, and Kao tests supported the existence of a cointegration association between the chosen variables. In the CO₂ model, we observed that tourism positively, and governance negatively, influences the CO₂ emission. However, in the case of the energy model, the results of tourism pose a negative relationship, and governance indicates a positive relationship with energy use. The results supported the pollution haven phenomenon, finance, and energy triggered pollution in the study area. Further, the research supported a two-way causality between tourism and CO₂, where there is a unilateral causality from governance to CO₂. Similarly, a unidirectional causality was obtained from energy towards tourism. Lastly, the key policy recommendations based on the outcomes of the study are encouraging clean energy investment, enhancing good governance, and sustainable tourism development for improving environmental quality.

     

Potential health hazard of drinking water in restaurants and tea stalls

Potable and equitable drinking water (DW) is a fundamental human right and essential for human health. This study is conducted to assess the groundwater and jar water quality of the roadside restaurants and tea stalls used for drinking by the local people around the Gazipur City area in Bangladesh. Water samples from 173 restaurants and tea stalls are collected. The physico-chemical and biological parameters are analyzed according to the guidelines and standards. The results illustrate that the color, EC, and Mn of 41%, 80%, and 62% of the samples, respectively, exceed the WHO and Environmental Conservation Rules (ECR) standards. In addition, E. coli and total coliform exceeding the threshold standards are found in 47% and 64% of the water samples, respectively. The contamination of DW by fecal coliforms is confirmed and supported by prior studies, which indicates that the DW supplied in restaurants and tea stalls are unsafe because of the possible presence of pathogens. These may cause potential health hazards to consumers from various water-borne diseases. Poor sanitation, unhygienic practices, and improper disposal of wastewater are responsible for the microbial contamination of DW. So, the authorities in charge of these places should take the right regulatory steps, such as regular sanitation inspections, DW quality monitoring, hand-washing practices, and better sanitation in these places.     

Fluoride Concentration in Drinking Water of Karachi City (Pakistan)

The ground and municipal water supply samples of Karachi city were analyzed for their fluoride contents. The fluoride contents in water samples collected from the subsurface and river sources were found below the WHO recommended value for the general health of the people. However, in some industrial areas the groundwater sample showed higher level of fluoride concentration. Continuous monitoring of water resources and cautious fluoridation is suggested to maintain proper status of fluoride concentration in the drinking water.     

Arsenic uptake and phytotoxicity of T-aman rice (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Oryza sativa</Emphasis> L.) grown in the As-amended soil of Bangladesh

A pot-culture experiment was conducted in open-field conditions with highly cultivated locally transplanted (T) aman rice (Oryza sativa L.) named BR-22 in arsenic (As)-amended soil (0, 1.0, 5.0, 10.0, 20.0, 30.0, 40.0 and 50.0 mg kg⁻¹ As) of Bangladesh to see the effect of As on the growth, yield and metal uptake of rice. Arsenic was applied to soil in the form of sodium arsenate (Na₂HAsO₄). Arsenic affected the plant height, tiller and panicle numbers, grain and straw yield of T-aman rice significantly (P ≤ 0.05). The grain As uptake of T-aman rice was found to increase with increase of As in soil and a high grain As uptake was observed in the treatments of 30–50 mg kg⁻¹ As-containing soil. These levels exceed the food hygiene concentration limit of 1.0 mg kg⁻¹ As. However, the straw As uptake varied significantly (P ≤ 0.05) from a low concentration of As in soil (5 mg kg⁻¹) and the highest uptake was noticed in 20 mg kg⁻¹ As treatment.     

A multiple criteria analysis for household solid waste management in the urban community of Dakar

Household solid waste management is a severe problem in big cities of developing countries. Mismanaged solid waste dumpsites produce bad sanitary, ecological and economic consequences for the whole population, especially for the poorest urban inhabitants. Dealing with this problem, this paper utilizes field data collected in the urban community of Dakar, in view of ranking nine areas of the city with respect to multiple criteria of nuisance. Nine criteria are built and organized in three families that represent three classical viewpoints: the production of wastes, their collection and their treatment. Thanks to the method PROMETHEE and the software ARGOS, we do a pair-wise comparison of the nine areas, which allows their multiple criteria rankings according to each viewpoint and then globally. Finding the worst and best areas in terms of nuisance for a better waste management in the city is our final purpose, fitting as well as possible the needs of the urban community. Based on field knowledge and on the literature, we suggest applying general and area-specific remedies to the household solid waste problems.     

Modelling the potential impacts of land use/cover change on terrestrial carbon stocks in north-west Morocco

Terrestrial ecosystems store more carbon (C) than the atmosphere and provide ecosystem services (ES) such as global climate regulation, by sequestering carbon within biomass and soil. Land use land cover (LULC) change is considered a key factor, playing an important role in the dynamic variations of carbon storage. The aim of this paper is to assess the effects that LULC has had on carbon stocks and consequently on climate change regulation in north-western Morocco over 21 years. To achieve this aim, the Integrated Valuation of ES and Trade-offs (InVEST) model is used to assess status and variation in the net amount of carbon stored by the different types of LULC, and the economic value of the carbon sequestered in the remaining stock. The results show that the total carbon stock increased from 4.81TgC in 1996 to 4.98TgC in 2017. Over the 21 years, the LULC changes had the greatest effect on carbon storage - an increase of 6.87% with 0.17TgC of carbon sequestered, since the majority of unused land was changed to forest and cultivated land. Based on the global costs of atmospheric carbon, we estimate the economic value of carbon storage services to be between US$1,800,000 and US$3,570,000 for the whole period, with an average yearly increment of between US$86,000 and US$170,000. The results show that the ecosystem management has had a substantial climate mitigation effect. Also, the possibility of paying for ES could inform policy on the adoption of LULC to support livelihood and management choices.     

Antibiofouling hollow-fiber membranes for dye rejection by embedding chitosan and silver-loaded chitosan nanoparticles

Environmental Chemistry Letters - The removal of toxic dyes from the wastewater and industrial effluents is a major environmental challenge. Various techniques have been employed for the removal of...