Airborne Alternaria and Cladosporium species and relationship with meteorological conditions in Eskisehir City, Turkey

Alternaria and Cladosporium, known as the most allergenic spores were first collected by means of Durham gravimetric sampler from Eskisehir atmosphere from January 1, 2000 to December 31, 2001. The daily, monthly and annual variations in spores/cm(2) of Cladosporium and Alternaria were recorded. During this period, a total of 10.231 spores belonging to Cladosporium and Alternaria genera were recorded. Of these spores, 5,103 were identified in 2000 and 5,128 in 2001. While 63.09% of the total spores were those of Cladosporium, 36.91% were of Alternaria. Relationships between airborne fungal spore presence and meteorological conditions were statistically investigated. A Shapiro-Wilk test revealed that the airborne Cladosporium and Alternaria spores differed from a normal distribution. Thus, a Friedmann test was performed followed by a Pearson Correlation Analysis. The effects of rainfall, temperature and wind speed on Cladosporium and Alternaria numbers were non-significant according to the sites and months (p > 0.05), but the effects of relative humidity on Cladosporium and Alternaria numbers were significant (p < 0.01). Spore concentrations reached to their highest levels in May 2001.     

Comparative evaluation of sizing of metal hydride (MH) hydrogen storage tank filled with different alloys

This study presents a comparative analysis of sizing of metal hydride tank filled with different alloys. Alloys include solid solutions and intermetallic compounds of the generic families AB₅, AB₂, AB, A₂B. The effects of the different alloys on the sizing of metal hydride hydrogen storage tanks are complicated and depend on many factors. In this paper, a thermoeconomic optimization analysis with a simple algebraic formula was presented for the estimation of optimum metal hydride tank surface area for heat transfer enhancement. The optimum area of the metal hydride tank filled with commercially available different alloys (LaN₅, Ti_0,98Zr_0,02V_0,43Fe_0,09Cr_0,05Mn_1,5, TiFe, Mg₂NiH₄) was evaluated and compared by the developed method. The optimum net savings and the value of payback were determined for four alloys. It is found that mathematical model can be employed for the determination of optimum metal hydride tank design and increasing net savings according to alloy types. The optimum areas of the tanks filled with four alloys (LaN₅, Ti_0,98Zr_0,02V_0,43Fe_0,09Cr_0,05Mn_1,5, TiFe, Mg₂NiH₄) were calculated as 0.136, 0.130, 0.133, and 0.173 m², respectively. The optimum net savings for tanks filled with four alloys (LaN₅, Ti_0,98Zr_0,02V_0,43Fe_0,09Cr_0,05Mn_1,5, TiFe, Mg₂NiH₄) are about 461.0, 409.3, 419.6, and 979.6 $ and the values of payback are about 1.98, 2.1, 2.17, and 1.37 years, respectively. Excessive area of the metal hydride tank would not be as economical as the optimum tank area. Thermal management of metal hydride tank must be designed for optimum points calculated at which maximum savings occur.     

Evaluation of a fast wastewater odour characterisation procedure using a chemical sensor array

Sewage treatment works are one of the major sources that cause atmospheric odour pollution. The increase in the number of complaints about odour nuisance is due to the increase in environmental concerns. Unfortunately, the legislation on odour nuisance from sewage treatment works is very limited. In order to determine suitable thresholds on which to base legal standards, reliable and efficient odour measurement methods need to be defined. A chemical sensor array was developed for the purpose of measuring wastewater odour. This paper describes the development of the chemical sensor system which is specifically tuned to odours of wastewater origin and which can give an electronic measure of the wastewater odours. Odour emissions from a wastewater treatment facility were detected by using a quartz crystal microbalance (QCM) sensor array. The array consists of nine sensor elements, which were coated with different materials. In this paper, the usage of these novel instruments in the water industry was shown.     

Skin prick test reactivity in allergic rhinitis patients to airborne pollens

The aim was to investigate the impact of atmospheric pollen in determining allergic rhinitis. It was conducted with 130 patients with allergic rhinitis in three different sites in Eskisehir, Turkey, in 2000-2001, using a gravimetric method with a Durham sampler. Skin prick test results, the symptoms of patients and their findings all confirmed the presence of allergic reactions to pollen allergens in the patients observed. During the period, a total of 47,082 pollen grains/cm(2) belonging to 45 taxa were recorded. Of the total pollen grains, 81.0% were arboreal and 18% non-arboreal. The majority of the investigated pollen grains were from Pinaceae, Salix spp., Chenopodiaceae/Amaranthaceae, Cupressaceae and Poaceae. Pollen concentrations reached the highest level in May (54.36%). The pollen allergens provoking severe sensitization were grasscereal mixtures (58.5%), followed by arboreals (33.8%). All patients (100.0%) were sensitive to grass. This study emphasizes the significance of determining the types and concentrations of pollen with a view to comparing changes in highly concentrated allergens.     

The impact of COVID-19 pandemic in medical waste amounts: a case study from a high-populated city of Turkey

Journal of Material Cycles and Waste Management - In this study, the amount of medical waste generated in a high-populated city in Turkey between January 2018 and August 2021 was evaluated, and the...     

Turning Scientific Approaches into Practical Conservation Actions: The Case of Comunidad Indigena de Nuevo San Juan Parangaricutiro, Mexico

Optimum natural resource management and biodiversity conservation are desirable goals. These, however, often exclude each other, since maximum economic benefits have promoted drastic reductions in biodiversity throughout the world. This dilemma confronts local stakeholders, who usually go for maximizing economic inputs, whereas other social (e.g., academic) sectors are favor conservation practices. In this paper we describe the way two scientific approaches—landscape and participatory research—were used to develop sound and durable land use scenarios. These two approaches included expert knowledge of both social and environmental conditions in indigenous communities. Our major emphasis was given to detect spatially explicit land use scenarios and capacity building in order to construct a decision support system operated by stakeholders of the Comunidad Indigena de Nuevo San Juan Parangaricutiro in Mexico. The system for decision-making was fed with data from inventories of both abiotic and biotic biodiversity components. All research, implementation, and monitoring activities were conducted in close collaboration with members of the indigenous community. As a major result we obtained a number of forest alternative uses that favor emerging markets and make this indigenous community less dependent on a single market. Furthermore, skilled members of the community are now running the automated system for decision-making. In conclusion, our results were better expressed as products with direct benefits in local livelihoods rather than pure academic outputs.     

Transesterification of hazelnut oil by ultrasonic irradiation

Ultrasonic irradiation is considered an effective way to increase mass transfer between immiscible liquid–liquid phases in a heterogeneous system leading to faster transesterification and higher yield and saving excess methanol and catalyst. In this study, the transesteri?cation of hazelnut oil with methanol and ethanol was performed in the presence of potassium hydroxide or sodium methoxide as a catalyst using two types of ultrasonic irradiation with a probe (20 kHz, 200 W) and a bath (35 kHz, 400 W); a conventional production method was also used. The reaction time, alcohol:oil molar ratio, catalyst type (KOH or NaOCH₃), and catalyst amount (wt.% of oil) were studied as experimental parameters. The highest methyl ester conversion was obtained as 98.12% by using ultrasonic probe at a 5:1 methanol:oil molar ratio with KOH 1 wt.% of oil as catalyst in 20-min reaction time at autogenous temperature. The application of ultrasonic irradiation by using a probe decreased the level of energy consumption, showing that this method may be a promising alternative compared with the conventional production method.     

Higher number of microplastics in tumoral colon tissues from patients with colorectal adenocarcinoma

Environmental Chemistry Letters - Microplastics have been detected in marine and terrestrial ecosystems, yet the toxic effects of microplastics on living organisms are poorly known. In particular,...     

Studies on antimicrobial activities of solvent extracts of different spices

The antimicrobial activities of the ethyl acetate, acetone and methanol extract of 12 plant species were studied. The extract of Capsicum annuum (red pepper) (fruit) Zingiber officinale (ginger) (root), Cuminum cyminum (cumin), Alpinia ficinarum (galingale), Coriandrum sativum (coriander), Cinnamomun zeylanicum Nees (cinnamomun), Origanum onites L. (thyme), Folium sennae (senna), Eugenia caryophyllata (cloves), Flos tiliae (lime), Folium menthae crispae (peppermint) and Piper nigrum (blackpepper) were tested in vitro against 2 fungi and 8 bacterial species by the disc diffusion method. Klebsiella pneumonia 13883, Bacillus megaterium NRS, Pseudomonas aeroginosa ATCC 27859, Staphylococcus aureus 6538 P, Escherichia coil ATCC 8739, Enterobacter cloaca ATCC 13047, Corynebacterium xerosis UC 9165, Streptococcus faecalis DC 74, Kluyveromyces marxianus, Rhodotorula rubra were used in this investigation. The results indicated that extracts of different spices has shown antibacterial activity in the range of 7-24 mm 30 microl(-1) inhibition zone Eugenia caryophyllata (clove), 7-20 mm 30microl(-1) inhibition zone Capsicum annum (red pepper) and Cinnamomun zeylanicum (cinnamon) bark, 7-18 mm 30microl(-1) inhibition zone Folium sennae (senna) leaves, 7-16 mm 30 microl(-1) inhibition zone Zingiber officinale (ginger) root, 7-15 mm 30microl(-1) inhibition zone Cuminum cyminum (cumin) seed, 7-14 mm 30 microl(-1) inhibition zone Folium menthae crispae (peppermint), Origanum onites (thyme) leaves and Alpinia ficinarum (galingale) root, 7-12 mm 30 microl(-1) inhibiton zone Piper nigrum (blackpepper), 7-11 mm 30microl(-1) inhibition zone Flos tiliae (lime) leaves, 7-8 mm 30microl(-1) inhibition zone Coriandrum sativum (coriander) to the microorganisms tested.