Site security for chemical process industries

Chemical process industries such as oil refineries, fertiliser plants, petrochemical plants, etc., which handle hazardous chemicals, are potential targets for deliberate actions by terrorists, criminals and disgruntled employees. Security risks arising out of these threats are real and must be assessed to determine whether the security measures employed within the facility are adequate or need enhancement. The essential steps involved are threat analysis, vulnerability analysis, security countermeasures, and emergency response. Threat analysis involves the study of identifying sources, types of threats, and their likelihood. Vulnerability analysis identifies the weaknesses in a system that adversaries can exploit. Depending on the threat likelihood and vulnerabilities, various security countermeasures are suggested to improve the plant security. Appropriate emergency response measures that could mitigate the consequences of a successful attack and concepts of inherently safer processes in the light of process security are also discussed in the paper. It is recognised that serious terrorist threats exist to the transport system of hazardous chemicals (by road, rail cars, ships, pipelines, etc.). However, that is not a part of this study, which concentrates on process plants and hazardous materials within immovable boundaries. A case study of a fertiliser plant is used to show the application of ideas presented.     

Performance evaluation of isoproturon-degrading indigenous bacterial isolates in soil microcosm

Isoproturon (IPU)-degrading soil bacteria were isolated from herbicide-applied wheat fields. These isolates were identified using cultural, morphological, biochemical and 16S rRNA sequencing methods. 16S rRNA sequences of both the bacterial isolates were compared with NCBI GenBank data base and identified as Bacillus pumilus and Pseudoxanthomonas sp. A soil microcosm study was carried out for 40 days in six different treatments. Experimental results revealed maximum 95.98% IPU degradation in treatment 6 where bacterial consortia were augmented in natural soil, followed by 91.53% in treatment 5 enriched with organic manure as an additional carbon source. However, only 14.03% IPU was degraded in treatment 1 (control) after 40 days. In treatments (2–4), 75.59%, 70.92% and 77.32% IPU degradation was recorded, respectively. IPU degradation in all the treatments varied significantly over the control. 4-Isopropylaniline was detected as IPU degradation by-product in the medium. The study confirmed that B. pumilus and Pseudoxanthomonas sp. performed effectively in soil microcosms and could be employed profitably for field-scale bioremediation experiments.     

Arsenic accumulation in lichens of Mandav monuments, Dhar district, Madhya Pradesh, India

Total arsenic in four different growth forms of lichens growing on old monuments in the city of Mandav, Dhar district of Madhya Pradesh, India was analyzed. Among the different growth forms, foliose lichens were found to accumulate higher amounts of arsenic followed by leprose form. The squamulose and crustose form accumulates the lower concentration of arsenic and ranged between 0.46 ± 0.03 and 20.99 ± 0.58 μg g^???1 dry weight, while the foliose and leprose lichens have ranges from 10.98–51.95 and 28.63–51.20 μg g^???1 dry weight, respectively. The substrate having high arsenic ranges also exhibit higher ranges of arsenic on lichens growing on them. The cyanolichens exhibit higher concentration of arsenic than the green photobiont-containing squamulose form. The higher concentration of arsenic was found at site having past mining activities. LSD (1%) shows significant difference for As concentration in lichens thallus between the selected sites and species both.     

Management of disease complex caused by root knot nematode and root wilt fungus on pigeonpea through soil organically enriched with Vesicular Arbuscular Mycorrhiza, karanj (Pongamia pinnata) oilseed cake and farmyard manure

This investigation was undertaken to compare the percentage response of colonization and development of VA-Mycorrhiza (Glomus fasciculatum) on a number of pulse crops viz. cowpea, chickpea, soybean, pigeonpea and lentil under glasshouse conditions. Among the above-mentioned crops, pigeonpea exhibited the best performance and was selected for further studies. In this host the development and colonization percentage of G. fasciculatum was investigated under two separate substrates i. e. soil amended with FYM and karanj oilseed cake keeping a control treatment of field soil. A third treatment amended with karanj oilseed cake and farm yard manure (FYM) was also kept which responded best in terms of colonization percentage. This treatment showing improved plant health as well as integration with G. fasciculatum was selected as an ideal treatment for the management of disease complex caused by root knot nematode, Meloidogyne incognita and root wilt fungus, Fusarium udum on pigeonpea. Thus the treatment constituting FYM, karanj oilseed cake and VA-Mycorrhiza reduced the disease incidence caused by both maladies to a great extent with the most promising improvement in plant growth parameters as compared to all others. The present investigation, in addition to proposing an ideal eco-friendly treatment for the management of this disease complex also proposed an excellent medium for the proliferation of the obligate bio-protectant, G. fasciculatum.     

Treatment technologies for mercury in soil,waste, and water

Mercury occurs naturally in the environment and can be found in elemental (metallic), inorganic, and organic forms. Modern uses for mercury include chemical manufacturing, thermometers, and lighting (mercury vapor and fluorescent lamps). The chemical and allied products industry group is responsible for the largest quantity of mercury used in the United States. Mercury, particularly the organic methylmercury form, is a potent neurotoxin capable of impairing neurological development in fetuses and young children and of damaging the central nervous system of adults. Mercury regulations span multiple federal and state environmental statutes, as well as multiple agency jurisdictions. In August 2007, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's (US EPA's) Office of Superfund Remediation and Technology Innovation (OSRTI) published a report titled “Treatment Technologies for Mercury in Soil, Waste, and Water.“ The report identifies eight treatment technologies and 57 projects, 50 of which provide performance data. This information can help managers at sites with mercury‐contaminated media and generators of mercury‐contaminated waste and wastewater to identify proven and effective mercury treatment technologies; screen technologies based on application‐specific goals, characteristics, and costs; and apply experiences from sites with similar treatment challenges. This article provides a synopsis of the US EPA report, which is available at http://clu‐in.org/542R07003 . © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. *

1 This article is a U.S. Government work and, as such, is in the public domain of the United States of America.

     

Pollution monitoring with the help of lichen transplant technique at some residential sites of Lucknow City, Uttar Pradesh

Samples of foliose lichen, Dirinaria consimillis (Fr.) Awasthi were transplanted at six residential sites of Lucknow city for monitoring the concentration of Cr, Zn, Pb, Cu and Cd metals at two vertical positions. The concentration of chromium and copper were more at the higher vertical position than the lower one. The maximum zinc was at lower vertical position than the upper one. Lead and cadmium were not detected in the present study.     

Assessment of trace metal contamination in the core sediment of Ramsar wetland (Kabar Tal), Begusarai,Bihar (India)

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - The concentration of trace metals Mn, Pb, Ni, Zn, and Cu in the core sediment from Kabar Tal wetland was analyzed to understand the level of...     

UV-irradiation assisted functionalization and binding of Pd nanoparticles in polycarbonate membranes for hydrogen separation

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - For hydrogen-based energy systems development, purified hydrogen (H2) is a basic requirement and it can be achieved by using the H2-selective...     

N-doped mesoporous alumina for adsorption of carbon dioxide

N-doped mesoporous alumina has been synthesized using chitosan as the biopolymer template. The adsorbent has been thoroughly investigated for the adsorption of CO₂ from a simulated flue gas stream (15% CO₂ balanced with N₂) and compared with commercially available mesoporous alumina procured from SASOL, Germany. CO₂ adsorption was studied under different conditions of pre-treatment and adsorption temperature, inlet CO₂ concentration and in the presence of oxygen and moisture. The adsorption capacity was determined to be 29.4 mg CO₂/g of adsorbent at 55℃. This value was observed to be 4 times higher in comparison to that of commercial mesoporous alumina at a temperature of 55℃. Basicity of alumina surface coupled with the presence of nitrogen in template in synthesized sample is responsible for this enhanced CO₂ adsorption. Adsorption capacity for CO₂ was retained in the presence of oxygen; however moisture had a deteriorating effect on the adsorption capacity reducing it to nearly half the value.