GIS-based multi-criteria evaluation for olive mill wastewater disposal site selection

Journal of Material Cycles and Waste Management - The installation of an olive mill wastewater (OMW) disposal site without well-defined standards and constraints may cause undesirable long-term...     

Effects of permethrin exposure on antioxidant enzymes and protein status in Mediterranean clams Ruditapes decussatus

The effects of permethrin (PER) on a panel of antoxidant enzymes; superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT) and glutathione S-transferase (GST) and indices of protein oxidation status (carbonylation and free thiols) were determined in digestive gland and gills of the clam Ruditapes decussatus. Animals were exposed to 100 ppb PER for 2 days. These enzyme activities increased significantly in digestive gland (p?<?0.05) after PER treatment and oxidative modification of proteins was detected in both gill and digestive gland extracts using redox proteomics. PER exposure significantly reduced the amount of protein free thiol groups in digestive gland rather than in gill, when compared to controls. Conversely, digestive gland showed significantly higher levels of carbonylated proteins than gill after PER exposure. Some proteins were successfully identified by mass spectrometry of tryptic peptides. Our data suggest that digestive gland of R. decussatus can be used as a model tissue for investigating environmental risk of PER contamination.     

An observational study on changes in biometry and generation time of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Odontophora villoti</Emphasis> (Nematoda,Axonolaimidae) related to petroleum pollution in Bizerte bay,Tunisia

Introduction  

We conducted a yearly polluted-reference sampling to assess the effects of petroleum pollution on life cycle characteristics of the meiobenthic nematode Odontophora villoti. Samples were taken every 15 days between 26 November 2004 and 25 November 2005 from two beaches of Bizerte bay (Tunisia), Rimel and Tunisian Refining Industries Company (TRIC). The latter site is located in front of the “Tunisian Refining Industries Company” runoff.     

Population structure of the Spanish sardine Sardinella aurita: natural morphological variation in a genetically homogeneous population

The importance of larval dispersal in determining the distribution and abundance of benthic marine organisms is well recognized; however, the contribution of post-larval dispersal has not been measured. I compared the dispersal of swimming larvae with that of rafting colonies in a population of compound ascidians, Botrylloides sp., living attached to leaves of the eelgrass Zostera marina in Tomales Bay, California, USA in 1990–1992. Colonies rafting on broken eelgrass traveled over 200 times farther and had comparable recruitment success relative to swimming larvae. The recruitment of rafting colonies into new habitats was facilitated by the ability of thesecolonial animals to grow asexually onto surrounding substrata. Rafting colonies brooded larvae that were subsequently relased after the colony settled into a new habitat. These results suggest that colonization of new habitats can occur by post-larvae as well as larvae, and that long-range dispersal by species with short-lived larvae may occur by post-larval rafting.     

Spatial analysis of resources and environmental carrying capacity in Iran

Urbanization and mass movement of the population from rural areas and small cities to megacities have led to environmental, economic, and social problems in Iran. In dealing with these challenges, assessing resource and environmental carrying capacity (RECC) is considered an effective method to leverage space and capital to achieve sustainable development. This study aimed to rank the provincial RECC in Iran. Toward this purpose, environmental indices were generated from remotely sensed and statistical census data. Then, the provinces were scored in terms of environmental, economic, and infrastructural carrying capacities, and RECC using the mean variance analysis method. Results demonstrated that in most areas, there is no relationship between economic and infrastructural capacities and development. Statistically, a correlation coefficient of −0.53 between economic and environmental carrying capacities indicated excessive use of environmental capacities. Moreover, the spatial distribution pattern of environmental, economic, and infrastructural carrying capacity was entirely heterogeneous between the provinces; there was a northeast–southwest pattern in terms of infrastructural capacity and an economic pattern from north to south. The distribution pattern of RECC is most consistent with the environmental capacity, pointing at the high weight of the indicators of the RECC model. In conclusion, this research offers a new vision for policymakers and provides a theoretical and applicable framework for implementing sustainable strategies in land-use planning. It is recommended that the RECC concept and tools can be used not only for planning but also for measuring the efficiency of spatial development programs and establishing land balances in the region.     

Modeling of Fluid Flow and Heat Transfer in a Copper Based Heat Sink Application

With the trend towards increasing the speed of processors in smaller sized of computers, there has been considerable interest in heat sink technologies with higher levels of performance and further miniaturization. This work addresses the fundamental heat transfer augmentation question of how to design a copper-based heat sink, when the overall dimensions of the bottom plate or fan are specified. A three-dimensional finite-volume model has been developed and applied to investigate flow and conjugate heat transfer in the copper-based heat sink. The model was produced with the commercial program FLUENT, which allows this nonlinear, highly turbulent problem to be simulated using the k-ε turbulence model. The theoretical model developed is validated by comparing the model predictions with available experimental data. The thermal performance and temperature distribution for the heat sink were analyzed and a procedure for optimizing the geometrical design parameters based on less space occupation and more efficient heat transfer coefficient is presented. Several design examples with different types of cooling methods and manufacturing processes have been analyzed. The reliability and effectiveness in heat spreading of those has been compared. It has been shown that the copper-based heat sink with louvered fins (case No.3) has an optimum design configuration.     

Maturation and diel reproductive periodicity of round scad (Carangidae: Decapterus punctatus)

The diel reproductive periodicity of Carangidae is poorly known but appears to be highly variable between species. Some species spawn during the day, others are believed to spawn at night, and it is demonstrated here that round scad, Decapterus punctatus, spawn at dusk. We collected D. punctatus in the eastern Gulf of Mexico during three April cruises (1995, 1996, and 1997). Based on histological criteria, size at 50% maturity was 113 mm fork length (FL) for males and 128 mm FL for females. The gonad-somatic index (GSI) of mature males was significantly different between hours and appeared to show diel periodicity. Diel periodicity was also observed in changes in female GSIs, whole oocyte diameters, and ovarian histology. The average GSI of mature females fluctuated two-fold between day and night, and the size distribution of whole oocytes in some fish was bimodal (at 0.3-0.4 and 0.7-0.8 mm diameter) at dusk rather than unimodal during most of the diel cycle. Histological preparations revealed that these rapid changes in ovarian GSIs and oocyte size distributions were the result of final oocyte maturation. Germinal vesicle migration was observed from 0900 to 1400 hours eastern standard time (EST), germinal vesicle breakdown was evident as early as 1100 hours EST, and ovulation occurred as early as 1800 hours EST. Spawning frequency (approximately every 5 days) was similar whether calculated from the proportion of females with hydrated oocytes during the afternoon or from the proportion of females with postovulatory follicles during the morning. Batch fecundity correlated with fish size and ranged from 5,500 to 34,700 hydrated eggs per individual. These findings do not support published hypotheses that young-of-the-year D. punctatus reproduce before their first winter or that D. punctatus reproductive output is bimodal within a year.     

Methyl jasmonate increases aluminum tolerance in rice by augmenting the antioxidant defense system,maintaining ion homeostasis,and increasing nonprotein thiol compounds

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Aluminum (Al) stress is known as a serious threat to the growth and production of crops in acidic soils. Here, the effects of different concentrations...     

Capacity and strategies of energy production from renewable sources in Arab countries until 2030: a review from renewable energy potentials to environmental issues

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Slowing and reversing climate change and keeping energy prices at affordable levels are the main important achievements of the use of renewable...     

Room temperature aqueous Paal–Knorr pyrrole synthesis catalyzed by aluminum tris(dodecyl sulfate)trihydrate

This article reports a novel procedure to prepare pyrroles using a modification of the Paal–Knorr reaction. Water is a safe solvent meeting environmental considerations, but most organic substrates are not soluble in water. A possible solution to improve the solubility of substrates is the use of surface-active reagents that can form micelles. For instance, combined Lewis acid–surfactant catalyst acts both as a Lewis acid to activate the substrate molecules and as a surfactant to form emulsions in water. Here, we prepared and used aluminum tris(dodecyl sulfate)trihydrate to condense various amines to 2,5-hexadione at room temperature. The sole solid pyrrole was separated by a simple filtration. Our findings thus show a novel and improved modification of the Paal–Knorr reaction in terms of mild reaction conditions and clean reaction profiles, using a simple workup procedure and improved yields with excellent chemo-selectivity.