Activity

The performance of a polyamide-based thin-film composite nanofiltration (NF) membrane (NF33) was investigated for the retention of atenolol, a pharmaceutical pollutant, from the single and binary aqueous solutions. The effect of pH, applied pressure, feed flux, initial atenolol (ATN) concentration, and different co-existing salts with varying concentrations were studied to test the performance of the membrane. The removal efficiency of ATN increased with increasing solution pH giving the highest retention (70.9 ± 3.1) at pH 9, which was slightly decreased with the increasing initial ATN concentration but increased with increasing applied pressure and feed flux. As per the uncharged solutes rejection concept, the average pore radius of NF membrane for slit-like and cylindrical pore geometries were, respectively 0.169 ± 0.003 and 0.264 ± 0.009 nm. The Spiegler-Kedem model could predict the performance of NF membrane by retaining ATN over the investigated range of feed flux. The calculated reflection coefficient (σ) was close to unity, demonstrating the convective transport. Addition of CaCl2 as a co-existing salt into the feed showed promoting effect on ATN retention, and its efficiency was lowered by the addition of NaCl and Na2SO4 salts. As per the cost analysis, the total annualized cost of treatment by the NF was found to be 0.53 $/m3.To provide access to sustainable sanitation for the entire world population, novel technologies and systems have been developed. These options are often independent of sewers, water, and energy and therefore promise to be more appropriate for fast-growing urban areas. They also allow for resource recovery and and are adaptable to changing environmental and demographic conditions what makes them more sustainable. More options, however, also enhance planning complexity. Structured decision making (SDM) can help balance opposing interests. Yet, most of the current research focuses on the selection of a preferred option, assuming that a set of appropriate options is available. There is a lack of reproducible methods for the identification of sanitation system planning options that can consider the growing number of available technology and the many possible system configurations. Additionally, there is a lack of data, particularly for novel options, to evaluate the various sustainability criteria for sanitation.Tibutes to SDG 6.2, 6.3, and 11, sustainable sanitation for all.In municipal wastewater treatment, inorganic coagulants (IC), e.g. polyaluminium chloride (PAC), are normally used to remove pollutants such as dissolved and particulate nutrients, in a process called coagulation/flocculation. However, IC use has been linked to issues e.g. in effluent water post-treatment, sludge management and disposal (IC increase sludge volume and metal concentrations in sludge), etc., raising uncertainties about their overall cost-efficiency and environmental benefits. In this study, the suitability of organic coagulants (OC) as sole precipitation agents to replace IC (PAC) was investigated. A total of 10 synthetic (i.e. polyDADMACs and polyamines) and semi-natural (chitosan, starch, and tannin-based) OC products were tested in treatment of samples from primary sedimentation and secondary sedimentation stages of municipal wastewater treatment, and their performance was compared with that of PAC. The study was conducted using the jar test methodology. The coagulants were tested for their a processes (e.g. BAY-218 activated sludge process, sludge dewatering, etc.).In topsoils, the activity concentrations of natural radionuclides (hereafter NRs) increase due to the addition of NRs from fertilizers, irrigation water, and air dust pollution. On the other hand, various physical-chemical and environmental processes such as radioactive decay, volatilization, leaching, erosion, and plant uptake were responsible for the decrease of the activity concentrations of NRs in the topsoils. In this study, behaviours of 40K, 210Pb, 226Ra, 238U, and 232Th in topsoils were modelled by the CEMC soil model and the HYDRUS-1D model. An exponential equation was proposed for estimating the accumulation rates of these radionuclides in the topsoils. Long-term accumulation of radionuclides was assessed for water spinach (Ipomoea Aquatica Forssk.) soil (hereafter VES) and rice (Oryza sativa L.) soil (hereafter RIS). We found that the current agricultural practices caused the increase of 40K activity concentration in the water spinach soil, and 40K, 210Pb, 226Ra, and 232Th activity concentrations in the rice soil. The accumulation rates of radionuclides were in the order 238U less then 232Th less then 226Ra less then 210Pb less then 40K. 25 years of cultivation with water spinach can increase/decrease + (165 ± 6) Bq of 40K, – (8.2 ± 0.7) Bq of 210Pb, – (4.3 ± 0.2) Bq of 226Ra, – (7 0.3 ± 0.3) Bq of 238U, and – (1.8 ± 0.1) Bq of 232Th in 1 kg soil. For rice cultivation, these values are + (1004 ± 39), + (3.3 ± 0.2), + (3.0 ± 0.2), – (5.1 ± 0.3), (2.2 ± 0.1) Bq kg-1 for 40K, 210Pb, 226Ra, 238U, and 232Th, respectively.Urbanization-induced cultivated land degradation can hamper the ability of peri-urban agriculture (PUA) to deliver clean food and agroecosystem services. Detailed geo-information about which cultivated lands are being influenced by urbanization will be important to designing future measures for the conservation of PUA. This information will be especially relevant for traditional grain bases because PUA is often underappreciated in these regions. For this reason, we performed a multi-faceted and location-specific assessment, including soil pollution, soil fertility, basic tillage conditions and land fragmentation, of cultivated land in a rural-urban transition zone outside of a city in northeast China. We also illustrated the combined risks in different urbanized environments via GIS-based two-step spatial clustering. The results indicated that, in general, cultivated lands were more polluted and fragmented, as well as less fertile and tillable, the closer they were to the urban area. Most of the affected culteri-urban cultivated areas of traditional grain bases.