Life Cycle Assessment of solar-driven oxidation as a polishing step of secondary-treated urban effluents

BACKGROUND: In this work, the life cycle assessment (LCA) methodology is utilized to estimate the environmental footprint of solar Fenton oxidation at pilot scale used as a polishing step of secondary-treated urban effluents. All inputs (e.g. natural resources, raw materials, etc.) and outputs (e.g. emissions, etc.) of the process were quantitatively defined and/or estimated. The system under study includes raw materials, energy, land use, chemicals, local transportation needs, and air-/waterborne emissions. RESULTS: The main environmental hotspots of this system were identified (i.e. energy consumption and use of chemicals). The environmental sustainability of this technology was found to be high, since its environmental footprint for the treatment of 1 m3 of wastewater was found to be only 8.7 kg CO2 m−3 , which is approx. 1.6% of the total CO2 emissions of the treatment of the daily effluents of a Cypriot resident. Nevertheless, alternative scenarios were investigated, in order to further enhance its overall environmental performance. CONCLUSIONS: The results indicate that the majority of the environmental impacts of this process could be attributed to indirect emissions, tracing back to electricity generation, followed by emissions from the chemicals used. The most critical improvement identified herein, is the use of a renewable energy source.This work was funded by Nireas, International Water Research Center of the University of Cyprus (NEA YΠOΔOMH ΣTPATH/0308/09), which was co-funded by the European Regional Development 15 Fund and the Republic of Cyprus through the Research Promotion Foundation. The authors are grateful to the manufacturer company of the solar pilot plant, S.K. Euromarket Ltd, for providing technical support

Antimicrobial lubricant formulations containing poly(hydroxybenzene)-trimethoprim conjugates synthesized by tyrosinase

Poly(hydroxybenzene)-trimethoprim conjugates were prepared using methylparaben as substrate of the oxida- tive enzyme tyrosinase. MALDI-TOF MS analysis showed that the enzymatic oxidation of methylparaben alone leads to the poly(hydroxybenzene) formation. In the presence of tri- methoprim, the methylparaben tyrosinase oxidation leads poly(hydroxybenzene)-trimethoprim conjugates. All of these compounds were incorporated into lubricant hydroxyethyl cellulose/glycerol mixtures. Poly(hydroxybenzene)-trimetho- prim conjugates were the most effective phenolic structures against the bacterial growth reducing by 96 and 97 % of Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus epidermidis suspen- sions, respectively (after 24 h). A novel enzymatic strategy to produce antimicrobial poly(hydroxybenzene)-antibiotic conjugates is proposed here for a wide range of applications on the biomedical field.The authors Idalina Gonçalves and Cláudia Botelho would like to acknowledge the NOVO project (FP7-HEALTH- 2011.2.3.1- 5) for funding. Loïc Hilliou acknowledges the financial support by FCT – Foundation for Science and Technology, Portugal (501100001871), through Grant PEst-C/CTM/LA0025/2013 - Strategic Project - LA 25 - 2013–2014, and by Programa Operacional Regional do Norte (ON.2) through the project BMatepro – Optimizing Materials and Processes^, with reference NORTE-07-0124-FEDER-000037 FEDER COMPETE

Database of selected parks in Bydgoszcz

Archiwizacja danych i ich późniejsze uaktualnianie wymagają tworzenia baz danych powiązanych z odpowiednimi podkładami mapowymi. Systemy Informacji Terenowej (SIT) charakteryzują opracowania w dużych skalach z wysokim stopniem szczegółowości. Wymogi te spełniają m.in. tereny parkowe. W artykule zaprezentowano zastosowanie SIT w tworzeniu baz dla wybranych parków miejskich w Bydgoszczy w celu inwentaryzacji ich drzewostanu. Utworzenie przestrzennej bazy danych wymagało wykonania wstępnych pomiarów sytuacyjnych oraz czynności związanych z ustaleniem gatunków drzew i z pomiarami dendrometrycznymi na terenach parków. Omówiono etapy tworzenia baz danych oraz scharakteryzowano wybrane parki i przedstawiono opracowane dla nich bazy. Przeprowadzone przykładowe analizy i końcowe podsumowanie potwierdzają przydatność realizacji opracowań tego typu.Archiving of data and its subsequent update brings with it need to create the database. Land Information Systems (LIS) are characterized by description of a large scale with a high degree of detail. These requirements fulfill the park areas. The paper presents the use of LIS in the creation of databases for selected urban parks in Bydgoszcz to inventory their trees. Creation of a spatial database required a preliminary of situation measurement and works related to determines of tree species and dendrometric measurement in parks. Discusses steps of creation databases and characterized selected parks and shows compile database. Sample analysis and final summary confirm the utility of this type of implementation

Efficiency of xenoestrogen 4-tert-octylphenol degradation by photochemical method

W pracy przestawiono wyniki badań nad fotodegradacją 4-tert-oktylofenolu (OP). Celem przeprowadzonych eksperymentów było porównanie efektywności metod unieszkodliwiania tego związku w homogenicznym roztworze wodnym. Degradację OP zbadano przy użyciu następujących metod: fotolizy bezpośredniej przy wykorzystaniu trzech różnych źródeł światła, fotosenybilizowanego utleniania oraz układu H2O2/UV.Results of the study on photodegradation of 4-tert-octylphenol (OP) are presented with the aim to compare its removal efficiency from aqueous solution. Various methods of OP degradation were tested: direct photolysis with the use of three different radiation sources, H2O2 UV advanced oxidation process and photosensitized oxidation