The protective effect of green space on heat-related respiratory hospitalization among children under 5 years of age in Hanoi,Vietnam

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Combined effects of global warming and rapid urbanization replace green spaces with urban facilities. Children in urban areas are at a higher risk of...     

Determine the most influencing stressors and the most susceptible resources for environmental integrated assessment

The paper presents a method to determine the most influencing stressors and the most susceptible resources for complex assessment problems involving multiple stressors impacting multiple resources over a region. The method is based on the concept of limiting priorities in a square matrix which capture the transmission of influence along all paths between stressors and resources in the matrix. The proposed method allows the relationship between stressors and resources to be looked at in both univariate and multivariate fashion, taking into account the interactions among the variables. Hypothetical and case study examples are given for illustration purpose. It shows that the proposed method is suitable for the determination of the most important stressors and the most susceptible resources, a common (but often uneasy) task in integrated environmental assessment.     

Primary biosorption mechanism of lead (II) and cadmium (II) cations from aqueous solution by pomelo (Citrus maxima) fruit peels

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - The present work investigates the primary adsorption mechanisms of lead (II) and cadmium (II) cations onto pomelo fruit peel (PFP) from aqueous...     

Spatial and temporal variations of PAHs in surface sediments of estuarine and coast of CanGio wetland,Vietnam

Surface sediments from estuarine and coast of CanGio wetland (CGW) of Hochiminh City, Vietnam, were investigated to identify the spatial and temporal variations of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). The total PAHs showed wide variation but similar to patterns observed (F?=?0.901, p?=?0.46) in LongTau (31?±?77 ng/g dry weight, n?=?13), SoaiRap (53?±?81, n?=?4), ThiVai (60?±?62, n?=?10) estuaries, and coastal areas (112?±?211, n?=?9). A decreasing trend in the wet season (F?=?8.8, p?=?0.01) reflected that inland sources such as wastewater discharged and atmospherically transported contaminants contributed to PAHs in sediments. The risk posed by the PAHs in the coastal and estuarine areas of CGW is still negligible. The present study provides baseline data, which can be used for regular monitoring and future strategy of environmental protection for the study area.

     

Optimization, equilibrium, adsorption behavior and role of surface functional groups on graphene oxide-based nanocomposite towards diclofenac drug

Aquatic contamination of diclofenac (DCF), an emergent non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAIDs), can result in adverse effects to many ecosystems through biomagnification. Hence, introducing effective remediation techniques to sequester the pharmaceutical wastes is highly fundamental to prevent their accumulation in the environment. Generally, adsorption has been presented as a green and efficient approach. Herein, we report the characterization and application of the novel magnetic nanocomposite ([email protected]₂O₄) derived from cobalt-based ferrite (CoFe₂O₄) and graphene oxide (GO) for DCF adsorption. For the optimization procedure, the response surface methodology (RSM) was adopted to investigate the impacts of DCF concentration (1.6–18.4 mg/L), DCF dosage (0.08–0.92 g/L), and solution pH (2.6–9.4) to find the optimum conditions for DCF removal, at 10.5 mg/L, 0.74 g/L, and pH 4, respectively. For the adsorption experiments, the kinetic, isotherm, thermodynamic, and intraparticle diffusion models were systematically studied. Moreover, we have elucidated the role of functional groups on the surface of [email protected]₂O₄ in enhancing the adsorption of DCF drug. With good removal efficiency (up to 86.1%), high maximum adsorption capacity (32.4 mg/g), [email protected]₂O₄ can be a potential candidate to eliminate DCF drug from water.     

Monitoring the levels of brominated and organophosphate flame retardants in passenger cars: Utilisation of car air filters as active samplers

Filters in residential and office air conditioning(A/C) systems have been used as sampling devices for monitoring different pollutants.However,cabin air filters(CAFs) in the A/C system of passenger cars have not been utilised for this purpose.In this study,we collected22 used CAFs from passenger cars in Hanoi,Vietnam to analyse for 8 polybrominated diphenyl ethers(PBDEs) and 10 organophosphate esters(OPEs).All the analytes were detected in more than 50% of samples with the exception of BDE153 and BDE154.The average concentrations of ∑_(10)OPEs and ∑_8 BDEs in the captured dust were 2600 and 40 ng/g,respectively with Tris(1-chloro-2-propyl) phosphate(TCIPP) and BDE209 as the dominant congener in OPE and BDE groups,respectively.CAFs are a potential tool to qualitatively assess the levels of semi-volatile chemicals in suspended dust in cars as a screening step for exposure assessment of those chemicals.     

The status and distribution of PCBs along the coast of Vietnam

Environmental Geochemistry and Health - Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), well-known as an important scientific achievement, are now considered as one of the most persistent organic pollutants...     

Fuzzy Decision Analysis for Integrated Environmental Vulnerability Assessment of the Mid-Atlantic Region1

A fuzzy decision analysis method for integrating ecological indicators was developed. This was a combination of a fuzzy ranking method and the analytic hierarchy process (AHP). The method was capable of ranking ecosystems in terms of environmental conditions and suggesting cumulative impacts across a large region. Using data on land cover, population, roads, streams, air pollution, and topography of the Mid-Atlantic region, we were able to point out areas that were in relatively poor condition and/or vulnerable to future deterioration. The method offered an easy and comprehensive way to combine the strengths of fuzzy set theory and the AHP for ecological assessment. Furthermore, the suggested method can serve as a building block for the evaluation of environmental policies.     

On-site rainwater harvesting and treatment for drinking water supply: assessment of cost and technical issues

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - This study assessed the performance of rainwater-harvesting systems installed for selected public utilities in the northern provinces of Vietnam where...     

A non-parametric distance-based method using all available indicators for integrated environmental assessment – a case study of the Mid-Atlantic Region,USA

The paper presents a multivariate measure useful for integrated environmental assessments. It is a weighted distance measure applied to metric data but based on nonparametric statistical procedures. The proposed measure allows all environmental indicators to be used directly without any reduction in dimension (e.g. as in principal component analysis) nor losing variance while being able to tolerate possible non-normality of the indicators, as well as non-linear relationships among them. Results of the hypothetical example and the Mid-Atlantic case study show that the proposed measure is suitable and valuable for integrating multiple indicators into a single index, an important task in integrated environmental assessment.