Guided group discussion and attitude change: The roles of normative and informational influence

Kurt Lewin and others have showed that group discussion effectively changed attitudes and behaviors compared to individually targeted messages. This study examines the roles of normative and informational social influence in this effect. High school students heard a message about replacing toxic products with nontoxic alternatives; classes were randomly assigned to hear the message delivered as a lecture or via guided group discussion. For female students (N=250 in 26 classes), HLM mediation analyses suggested normative influence predominated: Discussion was more effective than lecture and this effect was fully mediated by students’ perceptions that other students endorsed nontoxics. Content analyses of students’ comments indicated that three kinds of remarks led female students to this perception: (1) sharing knowledge about nontoxics; (2) asking questions about nontoxics; and (3) little praise for toxic products. For male students in separate HLM analyses (N=107 in 19 of the same classes), informational influence was most apparent: Postmeeting attitudes were higher after discussion than lecture, and this effect was partially mediated by cognitive elaboration about the message (but not perceptions others endorsed the message). In addition, males’ quiz grades were higher after discussion, and students’ comments fully mediated the discussion to quiz grades relationship. Results support the importance of hearing others’ promessage comments for changing socially motivated behaviors, although the routes of influence appear to differ for these samples of male and female students.     

The influence of institutions and organizations on urban waste collection systems: an analysis of waste collection system in Accra, Ghana (1985-2000)

Urban waste collection system is a pivotal component of all waste management schemes around the world. Therefore, the efficient performance and the success of these schemes in urban pollution control rest on the ability of the collection systems to fully adapt to the prevailing cultural and social contexts within which they operate. Conceptually, institutions being the rules guiding the conduct of public service provision and routine social interactions, waste collection systems embedded in institutions can only realize their potentials if they fully evolve continuously to reflect evolving social and technical matrices underlying the cultures, organizations, institutions and social conditions they are designed to address. This paper is a product of an analysis of waste collection performance in Ghana under two different institutional and/or organizational regimes; from an initial entirely public sector dependence to a current mix of public-private sector participation drawing on actual planning data from 1985 to 2000. The analysis found that the overall performance of waste collection services in Ghana increased under the coupled system, with efficiency (in terms of total waste clearance and coverage of service provision) increasing rapidly with increased private-sector controls and levels of involvement, e.g. for solid waste, collection rate and disposal improved from 51% in 1998 to about 91% in the year 2000. However, such an increase in performance could not be sustained beyond 10 years of public-private partnerships. This analysis argues that the sustainability of improved waste collection efficiency is a function of the franchise and lease arrangements between private sector group on the one hand and public sector group (local authorities) on the other hand. The analysis therefore concludes that if such franchise and lease arrangements are not conceived out of an initial transparent process, such a provision could undermine the overall sustainability of private sector initiatives in collection services delivery in the long term, as in the case of the Accra example.     

Characteristics of coal mine ventilation air flows

Coal mine methane (CMM) is not only a greenhouse gas but also a wasted energy resource if not utilised. Underground coal mining is by far the most important source of fugitive methane emissions, and approximately 70% of all coal mining related methane is emitted to the atmosphere through mine ventilation air. Therefore, research and development on mine methane mitigation and utilisation now focuses on methane emitted from underground coal mines, in particular ventilation air methane (VAM) capture and utilisation. To date, most work has focused on the oxidation of very low concentration methane. These processes may be classified based on their combustion kinetic mechanisms into thermal oxidation and catalytic oxidation. VAM mitigation/utilisation technologies are generally divided into two basic categories: ancillary uses and principal uses. However, it is possible that the characteristics of ventilation air flows, for example the variations in methane concentration and the presence of certain compounds, which have not been reported so far, could make some potential VAM mitigation and utilisation technologies unfeasible if they cannot cope with the characteristics of mine site ventilation air flows. Therefore, it is important to understand the characteristics of mine ventilation air flows. Moreover, dust, hydrogen sulphide, sulphur dioxide, and other possible compounds emitted through mine ventilation air into the atmosphere are also pollutants. Therefore, this paper presents mine-site experimental results on the characteristics of mine ventilation air flows, including methane concentration and its variations, dust loadings, particle size, mineral matter of the dust, and other compounds in the ventilation air flows. The paper also discusses possible correlations between ventilation air characteristics and underground mining activities.     

钻井废液的超临界水氧化处理及动力学分析

在反应温度为500～600℃、压力为25～30 MPa、停留时间为30～600 s的条件下,在连续式反应器中研究了钻井废液的超临界水氧化反应.结果表明:钻井废液的COD去除率可达90.00%以上;在600℃、停留时间为600 s时,钻井废液氧化后,剩余收集液的COD＜120 mg/L,满足《污水综合排放标准》(GB 8978-1996)中的二级标准.用幂函数方程描述了氧化剂过量时钻井废液超临界水氧化的反应动力学规律,反应速率常数与温度的关系符合Arrhenius公式,随停留时间的增加、温度的升高,有机物的去除率显著增加;反应速率常数随压力升高而增加,但反应速率常数的增幅随压力的升高而减小,反应活化体积不是常数.在25 MPa时,反应活化能和频率因子分别为(17 745.430 40±1 114.983 42)kJ/mol和1.152 3×10-4s-1模型计算值与实验值的误差在±15%以内.     

光催化技术在废水处理中的应用

近年来半导体光催化氧化已成为光化学领域和环保领域中的研究热点之一。本文综述了半导体多相光催化原理、提高光催化的途径、多种具有代表性污染物的光催化降解处理方法 ,提出了光催化技术存在的问题及发展方向     

非法废物贸易机制及相关对策研究

针对国际上某些发达国家向发展中国家越境转移废物这一倍受关注的现象,阐述了废物贸易,尤其是非法废物贸易产生的机制和发生的后果,对目前有关废物越境转移的国际公约作了介绍,并着重探讨了中国对于非法废物贸易相应国内立法及应采取的措施。      

工业废水处理装置中的废气治理技术

工业废水中排出的废气对环境的污染,是石化及化工行业需关注的新焦点,本文介绍了国外工业废水处理装置排出的废气情况及国内外相关治理技术的发展概况和最新进展,并探讨了国内开发废气治理技术的紧迫性、可行性及应优先考虑的方向。      

氢氟酸生产过程中石膏废渣的利用研究

在分析了石膏废渣熟料、石灰以及复合缓凝剂等主要物质作用机理的基础上,着重讨论了它们对加气砌块试样性能的影响,并通过试验确定了熟料的最佳引入量为65%~70%,饱和石灰掺量为12%,复合缓凝剂的用量不超过4.5%。      

综合利用石墨化废旧辅料的新方法

炭素石墨制品生产过程中产生的石墨化废旧辅料,在炭素行业是最有开发潜力的固体废物。通过初加工可实现回收利用,经研制开发新产品可实现综合利用。该综合利用方法表明,在实现综合利用中可获得大的经济效益和可观的社会效益。      

气力管道输送在垃圾收运领域的应用研究

气力管道输送应用于垃圾收运在国内尚处于起步阶段,开发该项技术目前还存在一定的技术困难,但若该技术能在环境领域成功应用,它将完全改变传统的垃圾收运模式,大大提高垃圾收集的效率,减小垃圾收运过程中对环境造成的影响。本文主要对该技术的优势及在国内应用的技术困难进行探讨,并在此基础上提出了解决方法。