Fast firing of tiles containing paper mill sludge, glass cullet and clay

The paper describes results obtained in the development of a previous research. We study here, in fast firing, the sintering behaviour and measure some properties of tiles containing a mixture of 60 wt% of paper mill sludge and 40 wt% of glass cullet. The behaviour of this material is compared to those displayed by materials obtained by the same mixture added with 10, 20 and 30 wt% of a natural red clay. In parallel, the same properties are measured also on a reference blend, which is presently used to produce commercial tiles. We show that powders containing 60 wt% of paper sludge and 40 wt% of glass cullet to which 30 wt% of clay is added give rise to materials that display a stable sintering process and have good hardness and strength and therefore could be used for the industrial production of tiles.     

Monsoon-induced changes in the size-fractionated phytoplankton biomass and production rate in the estuarine and coastal waters of southwest coast of India

Changes in the autotrophic pico- (0.2–2 μm), nano- (2–20 μm), and microplankton (>20 μm) biomass (chlorophyll a) and primary production were measured in the estuarine and coastal waters off Cochin, southwest coast of India during the onset and establishment of a monsoon. During this period, the estuary was dominated by nutrient-rich freshwater, whereas the coastal waters were characterized with higher salinity values (>30 psu) and less nutrients. The average surface chlorophyll a concentrations and primary production rates were higher in the estuary (average 13.7 mg m^???3 and 432 mgC m^???3 day^???1) as compared to the coastal waters (5.3 mg m^???3 and 224 mgC m^???3 day^???1). The nanoplankton community formed the major fraction of chlorophyll a and primary production, both in the estuary (average 85 ± SD 8.3% and 81.2 ± SD 3.2%) and the coastal waters (average 73.2 ± SD 17.2% and 81.9 ± 15.7%). Nanoplankton had the maximum photosynthetic efficiency in the coastal waters (average 4.8 ± SD 3.9 mgC mgChl a m^???3 h^???1), whereas in the estuary, the microplankton had higher photosynthetic efficiency (average 7.4 ± 7 mgC mgChl a m^???3 h^???1). The heavy cloud cover and increased water column turbidity not only limit the growth of large-sized phytoplankton in the Cochin estuary and coastal waters but also support the proliferation of nanoplankton community during the monsoon season, even though large variation in nanoplankton chlorophyll a and production exists between these two areas.     

Leachate recirculation effects on waste degradation: study on columns

The purpose of this study is to determine the impact of leachate recirculation on the degradation of municipal solid wastes (bioreactor concept). The study was carried out using columns containing approximately 50 kg of waste, in order to follow waste degradation over a limited time. Three types of waste were studied: fresh waste of standard composition, fresh waste of fermentable composition and some 8-yr-old waste extracted from a site in France. Measurement of the global parameters, such as chemical oxygen demand (COD), volatile acidity, alkalinity, leachate conductivity, methane potential of the wastes and biogas production monitoring (volume of CO2 and CH4 produced), were carried out. The quantity of oxydizable matter and biogas production was increased by the leachate recirculation, and the duration of the first degradation phases was reduced in all cases. Chloride, ammonium and organic pollution accumulation was observed according to the duration of recirculation. After 400 days of degradation, waste stabilization seemed to be reached for all of the recirculated columns (COD<300 mg/L O2, and methane potential reached).     

A Systematic Test of an Enterprise Strategy for Community-Based Biodiversity Conservation

Abstract: A commonly held belief is that if people can benefit financially from enterprises that depend on nearby forests, reefs, and other natural habitats, then they will take action to conserve and sustainably use them. The Biodiversity Conservation Network brought together conservation and development organizations and local communities to systematically test this hypothesis across 39 conservation project sites in Asia and the Pacific. Each project implemented one or more community-based enterprises such as setting up an ecotourism lodge, distilling essential oils from wild plant roots, producing jams and jellies from forest fruits, harvesting timber, or collecting marine samples to test for pharmaceutical compounds. Each project team collected the biological, enterprise, and social data necessary to test the network's hypothesis. We present the results of this test. We found that a community-based enterprise strategy can lead to conservation, but only under limited conditions and never on its own. We summarize the specific conditions under which an enterprise strategy will and will not work in a decision chart that can be used by project managers to determine whether this strategy might make sense at their site. We also found that an enterprise strategy can be subsidized and still create a net gain that pays for conservation. Based on our experiences, we recommend developing "learning portfolios" that combine action and research to test other conservation strategies.     

Source characterization and risk of exposure to atmospheric polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) in Ghana

With recent evidence that persistent organic pollutants (POPs) such as polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) are emerging in environmental media in some developing countries that otherwise have sparing production and usage history, it has become important to identify such contemporary source factors of PCBs and the risks this may pose, in line with the global consensus on POP management and elimination. The present study investigated contaminations from atmospheric PCBs in Ghana, deciphered source factors, and accessed risk of exposure to dioxin-like PCBs (DL-PCBs). Atmospheric PCBs were monitored by deployment of PUF-disk passive air samplers (PAS) at several sites across Ghana for 56 days. Atmospheric ∑₁₉₀PCB concentration in Ghana ranged from 0.28 ng/m³ in Kumasi to 4.64 ng/m³ at Agbogbloshie, a suburb in Accra noted for informal electronic waste (e-waste) recycling activities. As high as 11.10 ng/m³ of PCB concentration was measured in plumes from uncontrolled open burning of e-wastes at Agbogbloshie. Applying statistical source characterization tools, it emerged that e-wastes were a major contributor to the environmental burden of atmospheric PCBs in Ghana. The risk of DL-PCB toxicity via inhalation in the Agbogbloshie area was 4.2 pg TEQ/day, within similar order of magnitude of an estimated risk of 3.85 pg TEQ/day faced by e-waste workers working averagely for 8 h per day. It is suggested that elimination of e-waste sites would help to significantly reduce PCB-related toxicity issues in Ghana.

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Overview of surface measurements and spatial characterization of submicrometer particulate matter during the DISCOVER-AQ 2013 campaign in Houston,TX

The sources of submicrometer particulate matter (PM₁) remain poorly characterized in the industrialized city of Houston, TX. A mobile sampling approach was used to characterize PM₁ composition and concentration across Houston based on high-time-resolution measurements of nonrefractory PM₁ and trace gases during the DISCOVER-AQ Texas 2013 campaign. Two pollution zones with marked differences in PM₁ levels, character, and dynamics were established based on cluster analysis of organic aerosol mass loadings sampled at 16 sites. The highest PM₁ mass concentrations (average 11.6 ± 5.7 µg/m³) were observed to the northwest of Houston (zone 1), dominated by secondary organic aerosol (SOA) mass likely driven by nighttime biogenic organonitrate formation. Zone 2, an industrial/urban area south/east of Houston, exhibited lower concentrations of PM₁ (average 4.4 ± 3.3 µg/m³), significant organic aerosol (OA) aging, and evidence of primary sulfate emissions. Diurnal patterns and backward-trajectory analyses enable the classification of airmass clusters characterized by distinct PM sources: biogenic SOA, photochemical aged SOA, and primary sulfate emissions from the Houston Ship Channel. Principal component analysis (PCA) indicates that secondary biogenic organonitrates primarily related with monoterpenes are predominant in zone 1 (accounting for 34% of the variability in the data set). The relevance of photochemical processes and industrial and traffic emission sources in zone 2 also is highlighted by PCA, which identifies three factors related with these processes/sources (~50% of the aerosol/trace gas concentration variability). PCA reveals a relatively minor contribution of isoprene to SOA formation in zone 1 and the absence of isoprene-derived aerosol in zone 2. The relevance of industrial amine emissions and the likely contribution of chloride-displaced sea salt aerosol to the observed variability in pollution levels in zone 2 also are captured by PCA.

Implications: This article describes an urban-scale mobile study to characterize spatial variations in submicrometer particulate matter (PM₁) in greater Houston. The data set indicates substantial spatial variations in PM₁ sources/chemistry and elucidates the importance of photochemistry and nighttime oxidant chemistry in producing secondary PM₁. These results emphasize the potential benefits of effective control strategies throughout the region, not only to reduce primary emissions of PM₁ from automobiles and industry but also to reduce the emissions of important secondary PM₁ precursors, including sulfur oxides, nitrogen oxides, ammonia, and volatile organic compounds. Such efforts also could aid in efforts to reduce mixing ratios of ozone.     

Dynamics of leaf litter and soil respiration in a complex multistrata agroforestry system,Pernambuco, Brazil

High litter inputs in agroforestry systems contribute to soil microbial activity, soil fertility and productivity. Considering that the cycling of organic matter is essential to the maintenance of physical–chemical and microbiological properties of the soil, the aims of this work were to estimate the production, accumulation and decomposition of litter, and assess soil microbial respiration in a complex multistrata agroforestry system located in the north-east of Brazil. This agroforestry system has three strata formed by forest and fruit trees and species of multiple uses. During 3 years (2011–2013), leaf litter was sampled monthly to account for litterfall and quarterly to account for litter accumulation. The rates of litter decomposition were estimated using the ratio produced-to-accumulated litter, and the correlation between litter fall and rainfall was calculated. Precipitation data were provided by the water and climate agency of Pernambuco (APAC). Soil samples (0–15 cm) were also taken quarterly, simultaneously with the litter accumulation samples, and soil microbial respiration was assessed using the capture, by a KOH solution, of the evolved CO₂. The annual production of leaf litter was stable in the 3 years of study in this agroforestry system, and the monthly input of litter to the soil was influenced by rainfall, being higher in the dry seasons. The accumulated litter on the ground was constant, as was microbial activity (respiration) through time. The estimated litter decomposition rates were 1.49 (first year), 1.33 (second year) and 1.42 (third year), being considered rapid rates of decomposition. This guarantees (to the farmer) that this system is capable of maintaining soil fertility and eliminates the need for chemical fertilizers.     

Sexual forms and their ecological correlates of flowering plants in Siberia

The flora of Siberia includes 4500 species, 815 genera, and 123 families of angiosperms. The causes of the relationship between sexual forms and such ecological and biological features of plants as the life form, the mode of pollination, pericarp’s consistency, habitat type, zonal group, and the ecological group in relation to moistening were analyzed and discussed. For the first time, we demonstrated that gynomonoecy in the flora of Siberia was associated with a semiwoody growth form, pollination by wind, and propagation in zonal communities. It was revealed that gynodioecy in Siberia was associated with a semiwoody growth form, circumpolar or Eurasian distribution, and floodplain meadows. It was found that the ratio of dioecious and hermaphrodite plants in the ecological-biological complexes of species directly depends on the frequency of the abundance of species with endemic areas.