ABSTRACT
2,4-Dinitrotoluene (2,4-DNT) as a priority and hazardous pollutant, is widely used in industrial and military activities. In this study the synergistic effect of Fe-RGO-BiVO4 nanocomposite in a non-thermal dielectric barrier discharge plasma reactor (NTP-DBD) for degrading 2,4-DNT was evaluated. Preparation of the Fe-RGO-BiVO4 nanocomposite was done by a stepwise chemical method depositing Fe and reduced graphene oxide (RGO) on BiVO4. Field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), X-ray diffraction analysis (XRD), UV-vis diffuse reflectance spectra (DRS), and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy mapping (EDS-mapping) validated the satisfactory synthesis of Fe-RGO-BiVO4. To find the optimal conditions and to determine the interaction of model parameters, a central composite design (RSM-CCD) had been employed. 2,4 DNT can be completely degraded at: initial 2,4-DNT concentration of 40 mg L-1, Fe-RGO-BiVO4 dosage of 0.75 g L-1, applied voltage of 21kV, reaction time of 30 min and pH equal to 7, while the single plasma process reached a degradation efficiency of 67%. The removal efficiency of chemical oxygen demand (COD) and total organic carbon (TOC) were 90.62% and 88.02% at 30 min contact time, respectively. Results also indicated that average oxidation state (AOS) and carbon oxidation state (COS) were enhanced in the catalytic NTP-DBD process, which demonstrate the effectiveness of proposed process for facilitating biodegradability of 2,4-DNT.
ABSTRACT
Iranian western cities, including Hamadan, have been experiencing Middle East Dust Storms (MEDS) phenomenon problems in recent years, so the air quality is getting worse every year in these cities. The aim of this study was to evaluate the human health impacts of criteria air pollutants including PM10, PM2.5, NO2, SO2, CO and O3 on the citizens of Hamadan using AirQ model software 2.2.3. Considering the determined baseline incidence (BI) and relative risk (RR) rate, the attributable proportion (AP) of deaths due to cardiovascular and respiratory mortality attributed to PM2.5, PM10, O3, NO2, and CO pollutants was estimated to be 4.42%, 3.37%, 1.75%, 1.74% and 0.92% (95% CI) of the total mortality and the excess death cases were respectively estimated to be 131.9, 100.4, 52.1, 51.9 and 27.3 persons. In addition, cardiovascular mortality brings more contribution than respiratory mortality in total death number. The results of our study also showed that PM2.5 poses the greatest health effects on the citizens. Analyzing the average seasonal concentrations of studied pollutants (PM10, PM2.5, and NO2) and the mean seasonal temperature values revealed a positive linear correlation. Significant negative correlations were observed between the studied pollutants (PM10, PM2.5 and NO2) and relative humidity, and between PM and wind speed. This study, therefore, provides additional data in decision-makings for the development of strategies for reduction of ambient air pollution which will result in improvements of air quality.
Subject(s)
Air Pollutants , Air Pollution , Environmental Exposure , Health Status , Air Pollutants/adverse effects , Air Pollutants/analysis , Cities , Humans , Iran , Middle East , Particulate MatterABSTRACT
BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: Sludge stabilization process in terms of operational, environmental and economic indexes is the most important stage of treatment and its disposal. This study was aimed to determine the performance of Autothermal Thermophilic Aerobic Digestion (ATAD) system as one of the low-cost and biocompatible methods of sludge treatment. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This study has been done using a laboratory scale Autothermal Thermophilic Aerobic Digestion (ATAD). The reactor was consisted of two polyethylene tanks with a final capacity of 100 L for each tank. Both tanks with all fittings were installed on a metal frame. The variables of study were temperature, dissolved oxygen, pH, volatile organic compounds, total solids, COD and the number of Ascaris eggs and fecal coliforms per gram of dry matter of the sludge. The temperature was measured hourly and the pH and dissolved oxygen were measured and controlled twice per day. One-way ANNOVA was applied to analyze reasults. RESULTS: According to the results, the temperature of sludge increased from 11.7-61.2°C by biological reactions. Pathogen organisms were reduced from 80×106 to 503 in number during 72 h. After 6 days pathogen organisms and Ascaris eggs were removed completely. Volatile organic compounds and COD were reduced 42 and 38.3% respectively during the 6 days. CONCLUSION: It is concluded that the performance of ATAD in removing organic compounds from wastewater sludge were desirable. Resulted sludge from stabilization process were appropriate for use in agriculture as a soil supplement and met the indexes of class A sludge according to EPA's standards (CFR 40 Part 503).
