Development and performance of a parsimonious model to estimate temperature in sewer networks

This paper presents a model (inspired in another model) to calculate water temperature in free-surface flow with two main innovations: the convective heat transfer occurs only at the wetted perimeter of pipes, and the model was integrated to a commercial software used for hydraulic calculations in drainage systems. Given these innovations, we could reduce the number of modelling input data to calculate the temperature of water and soil in the radial and tangential directions along the pipes, with the advantages of using industry-standard software. To test the performance of the model, it was firstly calibrated in two sets of experiments (to calibrate the hydraulic and the thermal parameters separately), and benchmarked with a third controlled discharge against the case model. The results indicate that in unsteady-state situations the parsimonious model can be twice as accurate as the underlying model because the parsimonious model considers the hydraulic influence of sewer infrastructure

Effect of pH on the transport and adsorption of organic micropollutants in ion-exchange membranes in electrodialysis-based desalination

In energy-efficient electrodialysis desalination processes, salt ions are transported from seawater (high salinity) to wastewater (low salinity) through ion-exchange membranes. Besides salt ions, also organic micropollutants can be transported from wastewater (high in organics) to seawater (low in organics). The transport mechanisms of organic micropollutants through ion-exchange membranes are complex phenomena, and pH has a tremendous impact on them. Since pH variations in electrodialysis operation are common, it is of crucial importance to investigate its influence on these mechanisms. Therefore, a large pool of nineteen organic micropollutants of various physicochemical characteristics was selected and added to artificial wastewater, at environmentally relevant concentrations. Approximately twenty of these physicochemical properties were statistically analyzed to elucidate the dominant mechanisms affecting adsorption and transport of organic micropollutants as a function of pH. Additionally, the influence of different current densities on the transport of organic micropollutants at different pH conditions was studied. This pH effect has now been investigated for the very first time, leading to essential conclusions on the practical applicability of electrodialysis for seawater desalination. The presented findings advance our understanding of the type of interactions between organic micropollutants and ion-exchange membranes

Prospective associations between loneliness and emotional intelligence

Loneliness has been linked cross-sectionally to emotional skill deficits (e.g., Zysberg, 2012), but missing from the literature is a longitudinal examination of these relationships. The present study fills that gap by examining the prospective relationships between loneliness and emotional functioning in young adolescents in England. One hundred and ninety-six adolescents aged 11-13 years (90 females) took part in the study and completed the youth version of the Mayer-Salovey-Caruso Emotional Intelligence Test (MSCEIT-YV) and the peer-related subscale of the Loneliness and Aloneness Scale for Children and Adolescents (LACA) at two time points, which were 10 months apart. Prospective associations were obtained for male and female adolescents separately using cross-lagged statistical techniques. Our results showed prospective links between understanding and managing emotions and loneliness for both females and males. Perceiving and using emotions were prospectively linked to loneliness in males only. Possible explanations and directions for future research are discussed

Climate adaptation of interconnected infrastructures: a framework for supporting governance

Infrastructures are critical for human society, but vulnerable to climate change. The current body of research on infrastructure adaptation does not adequately account for the interconnectedness of infrastructures, both internally and with one another. We take a step toward addressing this gap through the introduction of a framework for infrastructure adaptation that conceptualizes infrastructures as complex socio-technical “systems of systems” embedded in a changing natural environment. We demonstrate the use of this framework by structuring potential climate change impacts and identifying adaptation options for a preliminary set of cases—road, electricity and drinking water infrastructures. By helping to clarify the relationships between impacts at different levels, we find that the framework facilitates the identification of key nodes in the web of possible impacts and helps in the identification of particularly nocuous weather conditions. We also explore how the framework may be applied more comprehensively to facilitate adaptation governance. We suggest that it may help to ensure that the mental models of stakeholders and the quantitative models of researchers incorporate the essential aspects of interacting climate and infrastructure systems. Further research is necessary to test the framework in these contexts and to determine when and where its application may be most beneficial.Infrastructure Networks Climate Adaptation and Hotspots. Knowledge for Climate Progra

Energy efficient UV/H2O2 processes for conversion of pharmaceuticals in drinking water: effect of water quality

Previous research showed that surface water in the Netherlands may contain significant concentrations of organic micropollutants like pharmaceuticals. A model has been developed which can predict the conversion of a broad range of organic micropollutants in a UV/H2O2 process with low pressure UV lamps. This model also was applied to optimize UV reactors, which were tested at three Dutch locations, including two drinking water companies. It was observed that the model predictions were very accurate, that very high conversion could be obtained, and that the optimized UV reactors resulted in a 30-40% reduced energy demand of the process. Furthermore it was shown that the effect of pretreatment of the water, reducing the DOC content and increasing UV-T values, can improve reactor performance by 30-70%

IgG antibody responses to Plasmodium falciparum merozoite antigens in Kenyan children have a short half-life

BACKGROUND: Data suggest that antibody responses to malaria parasites merozoite antigens are generally short-lived and this has implications for serological studies and malaria vaccine designs. However, precise data on the kinetics of these responses is lacking. METHODS: IgG1 and IgG3 responses to five recombinant Plasmodium falciparum merozoite antigens (MSP-119, MSP-2 type A and B, AMA-1 ectodomain and EBA-175 region II) among Kenyan children were monitored using ELISA for 12 weeks after an acute episode of malaria and their half-lives estimated using an exponential decay model. RESULTS: The responses peaked mainly at week 1 and then decayed rapidly to very low levels within 6 weeks. Estimation of the half-lives of 40 IgG1 responses yielded a mean half-life of 9.8 days (95% CI: 7.6-12.0) while for 16 IgG3 responses it was 6.1 days (95% CI: 3.7-8.4), periods that are shorter than those normally described for the catabolic half-life of these antibody subclasses. CONCLUSION: This study indicates antibodies against merozoite antigens have very short half-lives and this has to be taken into account when designing serological studies and vaccines based on the antigens

Aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR) agonists suppress interleukin-6 expression by bone marrow stromal cells: an immunotoxicology study

BACKGROUND: Bone marrow stromal cells produce cytokines required for the normal growth and development of all eight hematopoietic cell lineages. Aberrant cytokine production by stromal cells contributes to blood cell dyscrasias. Consequently, factors that alter stromal cell cytokine production may significantly compromise the development of normal blood cells. We have shown that environmental chemicals, such as aromatic hydrocarbon receptor (AhR) agonists, suppress B lymphopoiesis by modulating bone marrow stromal cell function. Here, we extend these studies to evaluate the potential for two prototypic AhR agonists, 7,12-dimethylbenz [a]anthracene (DMBA) and 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD), to alter stromal cell cytokine responses. METHODS: Bone marrow stromal cells were treated with AhR agonists and bacterial lipopolysaccharide (LPS) to mimic innate inflammatory cytokine responses and to study the effects of AhR ligands on those responses. Steady state cytokine RNA levels were screened by RNAse protection assays (RPA) and quantified by real-time PCR. Cytokine (IL-6) protein production was measured by ELISA. NF-κB EMSAs were used to study IL-6 transcriptional regulation. RESULTS: RPAs indicated that AhR(+ )bone marrow stromal cells consistently up-regulated genes encoding IL-6 and LIF in response to LPS, presumably through activation of Toll-like receptor 4. Pre-treatment with low doses of DMBA or TCDD selectively abrogated IL-6 gene induction but had no effect on LIF mRNA. Real-time-PCR indicated a significant inhibition of IL-6 mRNA by AhR ligands within 1 hour of LPS challenge which was reflected in a profound down-regulation of IL-6 protein induction, with DMBA and TCDD suppressing IL-6 levels as much as 65% and 88%, respectively. This potent inhibitory effect persisted for at least 72 hours. EMSAs measuring NF-κB binding to IL-6 promoter sequences, an event known to induce IL-6 transcription, indicated a significant decrease in the LPS-mediated induction of DNA-binding RelA/p50 and c-Rel/p50 heterodimers in the presence of DMBA. CONCLUSIONS: Common environmental AhR agonists can suppress the response to bacterial lipopolysaccharide, a model for innate inflammatory responses, through down-regulation of IL-6, a cytokine critical to the growth of several hematopoietic cell subsets, including early B cells. This suppression occurs at least at the level of IL-6 gene transcription and may be regulated by NF-κB