Cysteine as a green corrosion inhibitor for Cu37Zn brass in neutral and weakly alkaline sulphate solutions

The aim of this study was to investigate electrochemical properties of brass in neutral and weakly alkaline solutions in the presence of cysteine as a nontoxic and ecological corrosion inhibitor. Potentiodynamic measurements, open circuit potential measurements, as well as chronoamperometric measurements were the methods used during investigation of the inhibitory effect of cysteine on the corrosion behaviour of brass. Potentiodynamic measurements showed that cysteine behaves as a mixed-type inhibitor in the investigated media. Based on polarization curves for brass in a weakly alkaline solution of sodium sulphate at varying cysteine concentrations, an interaction occurs between Cu⁺ ions and the inhibitor, resulting in the formation of a protective complex on the electrode surface. The results of chronoamperometric measurements confirm the results obtained by potentiodynamic measurements. Optical microphotography of the brass surface also confirms the formation of a protective film in the presence of a 1?×?10^?4 mol/dm³ cysteine. Adsorption of cysteine on the brass surface proceeds according to the Langmuir adsorption isotherm.     

CFD Prediction of Air Quality in the Area between Two City Vehicular Tunnels Considering Moving Cars

Concentration fields of different pollutants that spread outside two roadtunnels predicted with a CFD code will be presented. The solution domain represents the city area located between two tunnel outlets – tunnel Strahov and tunnel Mrazovka in Prague. The vicinity of both tunnels is a heavily built up area with tall buildings forming typical street canyons. The CFD modelling predicts the situation after the tunnel Mrazovka will be finished and traffic will increase considerably between both tunnels. Namely, an interest was given to the prediction of dispersion of emissions leaving both tunnel and the area touched by the traffic. For the CFD predictions, a method previously developed for moving vehicles was used. The method uses combination of Eulerian and Lagrangian approaches to moving objects and is capable of modeling different speeds and traffic rates of cars as well as traffic-induced turbulence. Influence of several meteorological parameters was studied, namely wind speed and direction and traffic parameters, like traffic rates and speed of cars. The method separates contributions from different sources to the total concentration field, namely from background, tunnel outlet and roadway. Results are presented in the form of horizontal and vertical concentration fields of NO_x.     

Anaerobic Biodegradation of Blends Based on Polyvinyl Alcohol

The presented work deals with blends composed of polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) and biopolymers (protein hydrolysate, starch, lignin). PVA does not belong to biologically inert plastics but its degradation rate (particularly under anaerobic conditions) is low. A potential solution to the issue problem lies in preparation of blends with readily degradable substrates. We studied degradation of blow-molded films made of commercial PVA and mentioned biopolymers in an aqueous anaerobic environment employing inoculation with digested activated sludge from the municipal wastewater treatment plant. Films prepared in the first experimental series were to be used for comparing biodegradation of blends modified with native or plasticized starch; in this case effect of plasticization was not proved. The degree of PVA degradation after modification with native or plasticized starch increases in a striking and practically same manner already at a starch level as low as approximately 5 wt.%. Films of the second experimental series were prepared as additionally modified with protein hydrolysate and lignin. Only lignin-modified samples exhibited a somewhat lower degree of biodegradation but regarding the measure of lignin present in blend this circumstance is not essential. Level of biodegradation with all discussed films differed only slightly—within range of experimental error.     

Radiocesium accumulation in mosses from highlands of Serbia and Montenegro: chemical and physiological aspects

The aim of this work was (i) to determine the activity levels of 137Cs in mosses from highland ecosystems of Serbia and Montenegro, (ii) to find out if radiocesium is associated with essential biomacromolecules, and (iii) to investigate 137Cs distribution among intracellular compartments. It was found that biomolecules of mosses do not bind significant amounts of radiocesium (2.3-3.3% of the absorbed 137Cs), a behavior that was independent of the moss species. Cellular fractionation of mosses showed that membranes are the primary 137Cs-binding sites at the cellular level. They contained 26.1-43.1% of the initial radiocesium activity. It seems that 137Cs-binding molecules in different mosses are of similar chemical nature, and their distribution between various cellular compartments is not species specific.     

Radon time variations and deterministic chaos

Radon concentrations were continuously measured outdoors, in the living room and in the basement at 10 min intervals for a month. Radon time series were analyzed by comparing algorithms to extract phase space dynamical information. The application of fractal methods enabled exploration of the chaotic nature of radon in atmosphere. The computed fractal dimensions, such as the Hurst exponent (H) from the rescaled range analysis, Lyapunov exponent (lambda) and attractor dimension, provided estimates of the degree of chaotic behavior. The obtained low values of the Hurst exponent (0 < H < 0.5) indicated anti-persistent behavior (non-random changes) of the time series, but the positive values of lambda pointed out the grate sensitivity on initial conditions and the deterministic chaos that appeared due to radon time variations. The calculated fractal dimensions of attractors indicated more influencing (meteorological) parameters on radon in the atmosphere.     

An optimization model for the economic control of reservoir eutrophication

An interdesciplinary attempt to formalize and numerically solve problems of the management of reservoir eutrophication is presented. A dynamic ecosystem model is treated by means of a generalized penalty optimization technique to calculate the combination of control actions that minimize cost under the condition that given water-quality indices are preserved.     

Sulfur Metabolism in Polluted Sphagnum Peat Bogs: A Combined 34S–35S–210Pb Study

The size and isotopic behavior of sulfur pools in²¹⁰Pb-dated peat cores were investigated to obtain aninsight into retention mechanisms of pollutant S in twomountain-top peatlands of the Northern Czech Republic, CentralEurope. The bogs were situated 40 km apart in an area whichbetween the years 1985 and 1995 received as much as 130 kg Sha^-1 yr^-1 from the atmosphere. Vertical peataccretion was faster at Pod Jelení horou (JH) than atVelký moál (VM). Organic carbon-bonded S was themost abundant sulfur pool, constituting 77 and 65 wt. % at JHand VM, respectively. At JH both the S concentration maximumand the highest annual S deposition rate were displaceddownward by more than 20 years (from 1987 to the 1960s)indicating that the buried S is vertically mobile. At VM the Sconcentration was the highest in the topmost 2-cm section eventhough atmospheric S deposition peaked in 1987. Differentmechanisms of S isotope redistribution prevailed in thetopmost peat layers at JH, where a negative ³⁴Sshift occurred, and at VM, where a positive ³⁴Sshift occurred. Bacterial sulfate reduction was responsiblefor the negative ³⁴S shift at JH. One possibleexplanation of the positive ³⁴S shift at VM isrelease of ³²S-enriched products of mineralization duringpeat diagenesis. There was a strong positive correlationbetween the abundance of total and pyrite S along the profiles.The presence of pyrite S at VM (526 ± 60 ppm) suggestedthat even at VM bacterial sulfate reduction occurred. Ananaerobic incubation of JH peat indicated sulfate reductionrate of 600 nmol g^-1 day^-1. The turnover times forinorganic S pools were shorter than for the organic S pools.Cumulative S contents in the Czech peat bogs were found to besignificantly lower than in similar sites in the NortheasternU.S., even though the atmospheric S inputs were more thanthree times higher at the Czech sites. Possible causes of suchdiscrepancy are discussed.     

Radioactive contamination of wood and its products

This paper presents research on radioactive contamination of the three most common kinds of wood in Croatia--beech, oak and fir as well as acorn. Gamma-spectrometric measurements carried out on the samples of bark and wood of beech, oak, fir and acorn have shown radioactivity contents ranging from 1.6 +/- 0.1 to 37.3 +/- 0.5 Bq/kg from deposited 137Cs, whose concentrations in the soil of Croatia have increased after the Chernobyl accident. Measurements have also shown the radioactivity originating from 40K and 214Bi, which are part of the natural composition of the soil. The distribution of the radionuclides in wood has been discussed, as well as the impact of radioactive contamination of wood by the artificial radionuclide 137Cs upon the forest ecosystem. According to the corresponding model, it has been calculated that a 10 h daily stay in a typical family house increases the annual radiation dose of the population, due to the deposited 137Cs in the structure or furniture, by 343 microSv.     

Glass–ceramic from mixtures of bottom ash and fly ash

Along with the gradually increasing yield of the residues, appropriate management and treatment of the residues have become an urgent environmental protection problem. This work investigated the preparation of a glass–ceramic from a mixture of bottom ash and fly ash by petrurgic method. The nucleation and crystallization kinetics of the new glass–ceramic can be obtained by melting the mixture of 80% bottom ash and 20% fly ash at 950 °C, which was then cooled in the furnace for 1 h. Major minerals forming in the glass–ceramics mainly are gehlenite (Ca₂Al₂SiO₇) & akermanite (Ca₂MgSiO₇) and wollastonite (CaSiO₃). In addition, regarding chemical/mechanical properties, the chemical resistance showing durability, and the leaching concentration of heavy metals confirmed the possibility of engineering and construction applications of the most superior glass–ceramic product. Finally, petrurgic method of a mixture of bottom ash and fly ash at 950 °C represents a simple, inexpensive, and energy saving method compared with the conventional heat treatment.     

Application of impregnated filters to determination of smoke and ammonia

Whatman No. 1 filters impregnated with a 3% solution of oxalic acid in ethanol which are used for elimination of ammonia from the air stream before entering the absorber for collecting SO₂, were tested for a possible application (a) in the spectrophotometric determination of ammonia with Nessler's reagent and (b) in the reflectometric determination of smoke. It was shown that impregnated filters were as suitable for the determination of ammonia as absorbing solution and as applicable for smoke measurement as untreated filters. Further, the advantage of using impregnated filters for sampling ammonia lies in avoiding the interference of organic vapours which may occur, if absorbing solution is used.