Climate change impact on the potential yield of Arabica coffee in southeast Brazil

Regional Environmental Change - The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) projections of global mean temperature rises are worrisome for coffee crop due to the intolerance of the Arabica...     

Coffee,its roasted form,and their residues cause birth failure and shorten lifespan in dengue vectors

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - In dengue mosquitoes, successful embryonic development and long lifespan are key determinants for the persistence of both virus and vector. Therefore,...     

Effects of pre-oxidation and adsorption on haloacetonitrile and trichloronitromethane formation during subsequent chlorination

In this study, the effects of pre-oxidants permanganate (PM), persulfate (PS), hydrogen peroxide (PO), and ozone (OZ)) and/or adsorption on pseudoboemite-chitosan shell magnetic nanoparticles (ACMNs) on haloacetonitrile (HAN) and trichloronitromethane (TCNM) formation from aspartic acid (Asp; positive charge) and/or histidine (His; negative charge) were compared. Asp and His apparently do not interact in aqueous solution during chlorination. Asp and/or His can undergo partially oxidation by PM, but are recalcitrant to direct oxidation by PS and PO. Pre-oxidation with OZ decreases the formation of HANs but increases the formation of TCNM. ACMN prefers to adsorb Asp over His in the competitive sorption of coexisting Asp and His because of attractive electrostatic interactions. The rank order for the effect of the pre-oxidants and ACMN adsorption on dichloroacetonitrile and trichloroacetonitrile formation is OZ and ACMN adsorption > PM and ACMN adsorption > PS and ACMN adsorption > PO and ACMN adsorption; that for the effect of the pre-oxidants and ACMN adsorption on TCNM formation is PM and ACMN adsorption > PS and ACMN adsorption > PO and ACMN adsorption > OZ and ACMN adsorption. The favored adsorption of Asp over His by ACMN is weakened by pre-oxidation.

     

Fine particle migration and collection in a wet electrostatic precipitator

Electrostatic precipitation is considered as an effective technology for fine particle removal. A lab-scale wet electrostatic precipitator (ESP) with wire-to-plate configuration was developed to study particle migration and collection. The performance of the wet ESP was evaluated in terms of the corona discharge characteristics, total removal efficiency and fractional removal efficiency. The corona discharge characteristics and particle removal abilities of the wet ESP were investigated and compared with dry ESP. Particle removal efficiency was influenced by discharge electrode type, SO₂ concentration, specific collection area (SCA) and particle/droplet interaction. Results showed that the particle removal efficiency of wet ESP was elevated to 97.86% from 93.75% of dry ESP. Three types of discharge electrodes were investigated. Higher particle removal efficiency and larger migration velocity could be obtained with fishbone electrode. Particle removal efficiency decreased by 2.87% when SO₂ concentration increased from 0 ppm to 43 ppm as a result of the suppression of corona discharge and particle charging. The removal efficiency increased with higher SCA, but it changed by only 0.71% with the SCA increasing from 25.0 m²/(m³/s) to 32.5 m²/(m³/s). Meanwhile, the increasing of particle and droplet concentration was favorable to the particle aggregation and improved particle removal efficiency.

Implications: This work tends to study the particle migration and collection under spraying condition. The performance of a wet electrostatic precipitator (ESP) is evaluated in terms of the corona discharge characteristics, total particle removal efficiency, and fractional particle removal efficiency. The effects of water droplets on particle removal, especially on removal of particles with different sizes, is investigated. The optimization work was done to determine appropriate water consumption, discharge electrode type, and specific collection area, which can provide a basis for wet ESP design and application.     

Medium-scale gasification of oil palm empty fruit bunch for power generation

Journal of Material Cycles and Waste Management - This paper focuses on the performance of oil palm empty fruit bunch (EFB) gasification using a medium-scale downdraft gasifier for power...     

The cause and influence of self-cementing properties of fine recycled concrete aggregates on the properties of unbound sub-base

The use of coarse recycled concrete aggregates (CRCA) in conjunction with fine recycled concrete aggregates (FRCA) as sub-base materials has been widely studied. Although research results indicate that it is feasible to employ both CRCA and FRCA as granular sub-base, the influence of the unhydrated cement in the adhered mortar of the RCA on the properties of the sub-base materials has not been thoroughly studied. Generally, it is known that the strength of the sub-base materials prepared with RCA increases over time. However, this mechanism, known as the self-cementing properties, is not well understood and is believed to be governed by the properties of the fine portion of the RCA (<5mm). This paper presents an investigation on the cause of the self-cementing properties by measuring X-ray diffraction patterns, pH values, compressive strength and permeability of various size fractions of the FRCA obtained from a commercially operated construction and demolition waste recycling plant. Their influence on the overall sub-base materials was determined. The results indicate that the size fractions of <0.15 and 0.3-0.6mm (active fractions) were most likely to be the principal cause of the self-cementing properties of the FRCA. However, the effects on the properties of the overall RCA sub-base materials were minimal if the total quantity of the active fractions was limited to a threshold by weight of the total fine aggregate.     

Impact of data quality and model complexity on prediction of pesticide leaching

Accurate input data for leaching models are expensive and difficult to obtain which may lead to the use of "general" non-site-specific input data. This study investigated the effect of using different quality data on model outputs. Three models of varying complexity, GLEAMS, LEACHM, and HYDRUS-2D, were used to simulate pesticide leaching at a field trial near Hamilton, New Zealand, on an allophanic silt loam using input data of varying quality. Each model was run for four different pesticides (hexazinone, procymidone, picloram and triclopyr); three different sets of pesticide sorption and degradation parameters (i.e., site optimized, laboratory derived, and sourced from the USDA Pesticide Properties Database); and three different sets of soil physical data of varying quality (i.e., site specific, regional database, and particle size distribution data). We found that the selection of site-optimized pesticide sorption (Koc) and degradation parameters (half-life), compared to the use of more general database derived values, had significantly more impact than the quality of the soil input data used, but interestingly also more impact than the choice of the models. Models run with pesticide sorption and degradation parameters derived from observed solute concentrations data provided simulation outputs with goodness-of-fit values closest to optimum, followed by laboratory-derived parameters, with the USDA parameters providing the least accurate simulations. In general, when using pesticide sorption and degradation parameters optimized from site solute concentrations, the more complex models (LEACHM and HYDRUS-2D) were more accurate. However, when using USDA database derived parameters, all models performed about equally.     

生活中的化学阴影

直到化学品污染的新闻不断袭来,不断刺激公众的视听。许多人才知道,原来他们用惯了许多年甚至一辈子的生活用品、吃了一辈子的食物竟隐藏那么多问题。许多为常人所不知的化学物质名称,也慢慢地进入了人们的认知范围。     

校企合作:科研与产业的桥梁--访中山大学环境科学与工程学院李适宇院长

环保新技术、新工艺、新材料的研究、开发和运用,是推动环保事业发展的主要动力,有着无限的前景.如何实现环境科学研究与环保产业化的发展,进行完美的双结合,是当今环保业界一直在探索的课题.其中,校企合作被视为产学研一体化道路的一个发展模式.