Synthesis of branched,nano channeled,ultrafine and nano carbon tubes from PET wastes using the arc discharge method

Upcycling polymer wastes into useful, and valuable carbon based materials, is a challenging process. We report a novel catalyst-free and solvent-free technique for the formation of nano channeled ultrafine carbon tubes (NCUFCTs) and multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) from polyethylene terephthalate (PET) wastes, using rotating cathode arc discharge technique. The soot obtain from the anode contains ultrafine and nano-sized solid carbon spheres (SCS) with a mean diameter of 221 nm and 100 nm, respectively, formed at the lower temperature region of the anode where the temperature is approximately 1700 °C. The carbon spheres are converted into long “Y” type branched and non-branched NCUFCTs and MWCNTs at higher temperature regions where the temperature is approximately 2600 °C, with mean diameters of 364 nm and 95 nm, respectively. Soot deposited on the cathode is composed of MWCNTs with a mean diameter of 20 nm and other nanoparticles. The tubular structures present in the anode are longer, bent and often coiled with lesser graphitization compared to the nanotubes in the soot on the cathode.     

Modification of Thermo-Mechanical Properties of Recycled PET by Vinyl Acetate (VAc) Monomer Grafting Using Gamma Irradiation

Vinyl acetate (VAc) monomer of different percentage was grafted onto the recycled polyethylene terephthalate (r-PET) films using gamma irradiation. The properties of these modified films were characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), mechanical properties testing (Tensile strength, Elongation at break), dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA) and thermo-gravimetric analysis (TGA). The Tensile Strength (TS) of the modified PET film increased by 132.25?% to the highest value of 50.12 MPa at 15% VAc monomer concentration at 3 kGy gamma dose, while the elongation at break (EB) decreased by 31.83?%. FTIR was used to investigate the molecular interaction of the modified films. TGA revealed that curve of the modified PET film shifted toward higher temperature region by 95?°C, which is very close to that of PET film made from virgin flakes. The results indicate that modified PET films of better mechanical and thermal properties were successfully prepared using VAc monomer grafting by gamma irradiation technique.     

Effect of the Fe2O3/TiO2 Nanoparticles on the Structural,Mechanical, Electrical Properties and Antibacterial Activity of the Biodegradable Chitosan/Polyvinyl Alcohol Blend for Food Packaging

Journal of Polymers and the Environment - As the request for ready-made food grows, it’s more important than ever to develop effective antimicrobial food packaging materials to assure...     

Use of Natural 35S to Trace Sulphate Cycling in Small Lakes,Flattops Wilderness Area,Colorado, U.S.A.

Measurements of the cosmogenically-produced ³⁵S, a radioisotope of sulphur (t_1/2 = 87 days), are reported for the Ned Wilson Lake watershed in Colorado. The watershed contains two small lakes and a flowing spring presumed to be representative of local ground water. The watershed is located in the Flattops Wilderness Area and the waters in the system have low alkalinity, making them sensitive to increases in acid and sulphate deposition. Time series of ³⁵S measurements were made during the summers of 1995 and 1996 (July–September) at all three sites. The system is dominated by melting snow and an initial concentration of 16–20 mBq L^-1 was estimated for snowmelt based on a series of snow samples collected in the Rocky Mountains. The two lakes had large initial ³⁵S concentrations in July, indicating that a large fraction of the lake water and sulphate was introduced by meltwater from that year's snowpack. In 1995 and 1996, ³⁵S concentrations decreased more rapidly than could be accounted for by decay, indicating that other processes were affecting ³⁵S concentrations. The most likely explanation is that exchange with sediments or the biota was removing ³⁵S from the lake and replacing it with older sulphate devoid of ³⁵S. In September of 1995 and 1996, ³⁵S concentrations increased, suggesting that atmospheric deposition is important in the sulphate flux of these lakes in late summer. Sulphur-35 concentrations in the spring water were highly variable but never higher than 3.6 mBq L^-1 and averaged 2 mBq L^-1. Using a simple mixing model, it was estimated that 75% of the spring water was derived from precipitation of previous years.     

Impact of Land Use on Soluble Organic Nitrogen in Soil

Although it has been hypothesized that soluble organic nitrogen (SON) plays a central role in regulating productivity in some terrestrial ecosystems, the factors controlling the size of the SON pool in soil remain poorly understood. Therefore our principal aim in this work was to assess the impact of seven different land use systems (rough and managed grassland, deciduous and coniferous woodland, heathland, wetland and tilled land) on the size of the SON and inorganic N (NO ₃ ^– , NH ₄ ⁺ ) pools in the surface soil layer (0–15 cm). After extraction with deionised water, we found that in most cases the size of the water extractable organic N (WEON) pool was similar in size to the inorganic N pool. In contrast, the KCl extractable organic N (KClEON) pool constituted the dominant form of soluble N in soils under all land uses, perhaps indicating that significant amounts were held on the soil exchange phase. In contrast to inorganic N, which varied significantly with land use, the size of the KClEON and WEON pool was similar for all land uses with the exception of KClEON in tilled land, where significantly lower amounts were observed. We conclude that SON constitutes an important soil N pool in a broad range of land uses, and that its role in microbial N assimilation, plant nutrition and ecosystem responses to atmospheric N deposition warrants further attention. SAFRD, University of Newcastle, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, NE1 7RU, U.K.     

Lightweight Concrete Containing an Alkaline Resistant Starch-Based Aquagel

Starch aquagel-based lightweight concrete has properties similar to those of other lightweight concrete products. However, starch aquagels are unstable in the strongly alkaline conditions typical of Portland Cement-based concrete and may interfere with the setting process. The effect of alkali treatments on the physical, mechanical, and functional properties of starch aquagels and aquagels from starch/polymer blends was investigated. Starch was blended at 100–115°C in a twin-screw extruder with five different polymers to determine whether the blends improved alkaline resistance. Polymer blends containing 5%, 15%, and 30% of the polymer hydrated and formed aquagels when equilibrated in water for 24 h. However, equilibrium moisture content was lower for the blends compared to the starch control. Aquagels equilibrated in 0.15 N NaOH swelled, lost compressive strength and had greater than 90% moisture. The blend of starch and 30% PVOH absorbed less moisture and was more resistant to alkaline dissolution in 1 N NaOH than the other blends tested making it a more suitable material for aquagel-based concrete. The moisture content of starch-based aquagels and mixing time were critical factors in determining setting times. The size of aquagel blends had a minor effect on density and compressive strength.     

Utilization of magnetic and electrostatic separation in the recycling of printed circuit boards scrap

The progress of the technology is directly related to the growth of production and consumption of electrical/electronics equipment, especially of personal computers. This type of equipment has a relatively short average lifetime, 2-3 years. The amount of defective or obsolete equipment has been increasing substantially; consequently its disposition and/or recycling should be studied. In this work, printed circuit boards, which are used in personal computers, were studied in order to recover the metals in the circuit boards through mechanical processing, such as crushing, screening, as well as magnetic and electrostatic separation. The results obtained demonstrate the feasibility of using these processes to separate metal fractions from polymers and ceramics, and that it is possible to obtain a fraction concentrated in metals containing more than 50% on average of copper, 24% of tin and 8% of lead.     

Atmospheric emissions and attenuation of non-methane organic compounds in cover soils at a French landfill

In addition to methane (CH(4)) and carbon dioxide (CO(2)), landfill gas may contain more than 200 non-methane organic compounds (NMOCs) including C(2+)-alkanes, aromatics, and halogenated hydrocarbons. Although the trace components make up less than 1% v/v of typical landfill gas, they may exert a disproportionate environmental burden. The objective of this work was to study the dynamics of CH(4) and NMOCs in the landfill cover soils overlying two types of gas collection systems: a conventional gas collection system with vertical wells and an innovative horizontal gas collection layer consisting of permeable gravel with a geomembrane above it. The 47 NMOCs quantified in the landfill gas samples included primarily alkanes (C(2)-C(10)), alkenes (C(2)-C(4)), halogenated hydrocarbons (including (hydro)chlorofluorocarbons ((H)CFCs)), and aromatic hydrocarbons (BTEXs). In general, both CH(4) and NMOC fluxes were all very small with positive and negative fluxes. The highest percentages of positive fluxes in this study (considering all quantified species) were observed at the hotspots, located mainly along cell perimeters of the conventional cell. The capacity of the cover soil for NMOC oxidation was investigated in microcosms incubated with CH(4) and oxygen (O(2)). The cover soil showed a relatively high capacity for CH(4) oxidation and simultaneous co-oxidation of the halogenated aliphatic compounds, especially at the conventional cell. Fully substituted carbons (TeCM, PCE, CFC-11, CFC-12, CFC-113, HFC-134a, and HCFC-141b) were not degraded in the presence of CH(4) and O(2). Benzene and toluene were also degraded with relative high rates. This study demonstrates that landfill soil covers show a significant potential for CH(4) oxidation and co-oxidation of NMOCs.