Evaluation of municipal solid waste composting kinetics

Most modern municipal solid waste (MSW) composting operations have emphasized the enhancement of decomposition of the organic fraction of the waste to comply with strict environmental regulations. This can be achieved once the composting process kinetics are well understood. This study examined process kinetics through experimentation with bench-scale reactors under controlled composting conditions to show the interdependence between biological, chemical and physical factors during composting of MSW. The effects of temperature, moisture content, waste particle size and carbon to nitrogen (C/N) ratio on process kinetics were evaluated. The results obtained revealed that these factors should be carefully controlled in order to achieve optimum process performance. It has been found that the organic matter degradation during composting follows a first-order kinetic model.     

Correlation of pmax and KSt to specific surface area and calorific value of a dust

The safety characteristics p_max and K_St of a flammable dust are usually determined in a closed apparatus (20 l- or 1 m³-vessel). The results are strongly influenced by the parameters of the apparatus (e.g. the volume, geometry, dispersion system). The aim of this project is to investigate whether there is a correlation between p_max and K_St on the one hand and the calorific value H_S and the specific surface area S_m of the dust on the other. In an experimental study, around 200 dust samples from different sectors of industry will be analysed. The analysis of around 102 dusts shows that the correlation may be described by a logarithmic function. Owing to differences in reaction mechanism it is reasonable to formulate different functions for different substance groups (e.g. metals, organic materials). This may lead to an algorithm which can predict p_max and K_St from H_S and S_m within a defined range of error.     

The influence of particle size and concentration combined with pH on coagulation mechanisms

In order to evaluate the influence of particle size and particle concentration on the coagulation process, two kinds of particle suspensions, nanoparticles and microparticles,were employed to investigate the effect of particle size on coagulation mechanisms with varying coagulation parameters. Results showed that it is easier for nanoparticles to cause self-aggregation because of Brownian motion, while interception and sedimentation are the mainly physical processes affecting particle transport for microparticles, so they are more stable and disperse more easily. The particle size distribution and particle concentration had distinct influence on the coagulation mechanisms. Under neutral conditions, as the amount of coagulant increased, the coagulation mechanism for nanoparticles changed from charge neutralization to sweep flocculation and the nanoparticles became destabilized, re-stabilized and again destabilized. For microparticles, although the coagulation mechanism was the same as that of nanoparticles, the increased rate of aluminum hydroxide precipitation exceeded the adsorption of incipiently formed soluble alum species, resulting in the disappearance of the re-stabilization zone. Under acidic conditions, Brownian motion dominates for nanoparticles at low particle concentrations, while sweep flocculation is predominant at high particle concentrations. As for microparticles, charge neutralization and sweep flocculation are the mechanisms for low and high particle concentrations respectively.Under alkaline condition, although the mechanisms for both nano-and microparticles are the same, the morphology of flocs and the kinetics of floc formation are different. At low particle concentrations, nanoparticles have larger growth rate and final size of flocs, while at high particle concentrations, nanoparticles have higher fractal dimension and recovery factors.     

Microbial aerosol particles in four seasons of sanitary landfill site: Molecular approaches, traceability and risk assessment

Landfill sites are regarded as prominent sources of bioaerosols for the surrounding atmosphere. The present study focused on the emission of airborne bacteria and fungi in four seasons of a sanitary landfill site. The main species found in bioaerosols were assayed using high-throughput sequencing. The SourceTracker method was utilized to identify the sources of the bioaerosols present at the boundary of the landfill site. Furthermore, the health consequences of the exposure to bioaerosols were evaluated based on the average daily dose rates. Results showed that the concentrations of airborne bacteria in the operation area (OPA) and the leakage treatment area (LTA) were in the range of (4684 ± 477)–(10883 ± 1395) CFU/m³ and (3179 ± 453)–(9051 ± 738) CFU/m³, respectively. The average emission levels of fungal aerosols were 4026 CFU/m³ for OPA and 1295 CFU/m³ for LTA. The landfill site received the maximum bioaerosol load during summer and the minimum during winter. Approximately 41.39%– 86.24% of the airborne bacteria had a particle size of 1.1 to 4.7 µm, whereas 48.27%– 66.45% of the airborne fungi had a particle size of more than 4.7 µm. Bacillus sp., Brevibacillus sp., and Paenibacillus sp. were abundant in the bacterial population, whereas Penicillium sp. and Aspergillus sp. dominated the fungal population. Bioaerosols released from the working area and treatment of leachate were the two main sources that emerged in the surrounding air of the landfill site boundary. The exposure risks during summer and autumn were higher than those in spring and winter.     

Control of exhaled SARS-CoV-2-laden aerosols in the interpersonal breathing microenvironment in a ventilated room with limited space air stability

The Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) highlights the importance of understanding and controlling the spread of the coronavirus between persons. We experimentally and numerically investigated an advanced engineering and environmental method on controlling the transmission of airborne SARS-CoV-2-laden aerosols in the breathing microenvironment between two persons during interactive breathing process by combining the limited space air stability and a ventilation method. Experiments were carried out in a full-scale ventilated room with different limited space air stability conditions, i.e., stable condition, neutral condition and unstable condition. Two real humans were involved to conducted normal breathing process in the room and the exhaled carbon dioxide was used as the surrogate of infectious airborne SARS-CoV-2-laden aerosols from respiratory activities. A correspondent numerical model was established to visualize the temperature field and contaminated field in the test room. Results show that the performance of a ventilation system on removing infectious airborne SARS-CoV-2-laden aerosols from the interpersonal breathing microenvironment is dependent on the limited space air stability conditions. Appropriate ventilation method should be implemented based on an evaluation of the air condition. It is recommended that total volume ventilation methods are suitable for unstable and neutral conditions and local ventilation methods are preferable for stable conditions. This study provides an insight into the transmission of airborne SARS-CoV-2-laden aerosols between persons in ventilated rooms with different limited space air stability conditions. Useful guidance has been provided to cope with COVID-19 in limited spaces.     

Effect of transient heat transfer on ignition of solid particles

Ignition and combustion of solid particles are the issues of interest for many industrial applications. When simulating ignition and combustion of solid particles using available standard (ST) models, a number of simplifying assumptions are usually adopted, which are not always justified. For example, for calculating heat flux to particle surface, the Newton law is often applied with the heat flux proportional to the difference between the gas temperature and the mean particle temperature. However, Newton law is known to be valid only for steady-state heat transfer. Moreover, the actual heat flux is determined by the particle surface temperature rather than its mean temperature. The objective of this work is to develop a new particle-heating model with the correction factors to the Newton law taking into account transient heat transfer to a particle and nonuniform temperature distribution inside the particle. It was shown that the new particle-heating model correlates much better with detailed numerical calculations than the ST model. The transient heating effects were shown to be important for the problem of solid particle ignition in the oxidizer gas.     

大气细菌粒子与飘尘粒子的关系

本研究用ANDERSEN生物粒子采样器和光散射气溶胶粒子计数器,在北京西单和丰台对大气细菌粒子与飘尘粒子的浓度和浓度分布及两者之间的关系进行了观测。结果表明,大气细菌粒子的日平均浓度为2.882个/l,浓度分布是从第6级至第1级逐级增大;飘尘粒子的平均浓度为149464个/l,浓度分布是从0.5～32μm依次减小:大气细菌粒子浓度与≥2.0μm的飘尘粒子有非常明显的正相关关系。     

生物陶粒废水处理与回用技术研究

通过对生物陶粒工艺处理石油炼制废水技术的改进和研究,使出水不仅能够达到国家和地方排放标准要求,而且完全可以达到工业循环用水标准要求,取得了良好的经济效益和环境效益。     

“后桥”专机流水线排风除尘系统设计

通过治理某厂差动齿轮箱壳体流水线中各类机床在生产过程中产生的金属粉尘，介绍了排风除尘系统的吸尘罩设计，排风量计算，风管管路布置以及除尘器和风机的选用等，系统运行结果表明，达到设计要求。     

Cation exchange capacities of soil organic matter fractions in a Ferric Lixisol with different organic matter inputs

Soil organic matter (SOM) has an important effect on the physicochemical status of highly weathered soils in the tropics. This work was conducted to determine the contribution of different SOM fractions to the cation exchange capacity (CEC) of a tropical soil and to study the effect of organic matter inputs of different biochemical composition on the CEC of SOM. Soil samples were collected from a 20-year-old arboretum established on a Ferric Lixisol, under seven multipurpose tree species: Afzelia africana, Dactyladenia barteri, Gliricidia sepium, Gmelina arborea, Leucaena leucocephala, Pterocarpus santalinoides, and Treculia africana. Fractions were obtained by wet sieving and sedimentation after ultrasonic dispersion. Relationships between CEC and pH were determined using the silver thiourea-method and were described by linear regression. The CEC of the fractions smaller than 0.053 mm was inversely related to their particle size: clay (<0.002 mm)>fine silt (0.002–0.02 mm)>coarse silt (0.02–0.053 mm), except for the soils under T. africana, D. barteri, and L. leucocephala, where the CEC of the fine silt fraction was highest or comparable to the CEC of the clay fraction. The clay and fine silt fractions were responsible for 76–90% of the soil CEC at pH 5.8. The contribution of the fine silt fraction to the CEC at pH 5.8 ranged from 35 to 50%, which stressed the importance of the fine silt fraction for the physicochemical properties of the soil. Differences in CEC between treatments for the whole soil and the fractions could be explained by the differences in carbon content. Except for the intercept for the clay fraction, SOM had a significant (P<0.001) contribution to both the intercepts (=estimated CEC at pH 0) and slopes (=pH-dependent charge) of the CEC–pH relationships for the whole soil and the fractions. The CEC of SOM at pH 5.8 varied between 283 cmol_c kg⁻¹ C for particulate organic matter, and 563 cmol_c kg⁻¹ C for the fine silt fraction. The biochemical composition of the organic inputs did not have an important effect on the CEC of SOM. In total, SOM was responsible for 75–85% of the CEC of these soils.