A Risk-Based Approach for Contaminants of Emerging Concern in Drinking Water Production and Distribution Chain

Provision of safe drinking water (DW) is one of the major requisites for human health, related to four Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the United Nation 2030 Agenda: SDGs 3 (Good health), 6 (Clean water and sanitation), 11 (Sustainable cities) and 12 (Responsible production and consumption). However, this is hindered by the presence, especially in highly-anthropized contexts, of contaminants of emerging concern (CECs) in DW, that may pose a risk for human health. The present study aims at developing a holistic framework to support both (i) decision-makers for CECs prioritization in DW regulation and (ii) water utilities for the selection of appropriate monitoring and treatment interventions for the optimization of DW supply system. In detail, a quantitative chemical risk assessment (QCRA), including uncertainties related to both exposure and hazard assessments, was developed. Then, it was combined with testing and modeling of CECs fate in treatment processes and in distribution network, obtaining a robust tool to achieve the above-mentioned SDGs

Destination Online Communication: Why Less is Sometimes More. A Study of Online Communications of English Destinations

This research investigates the relationship between Web site design and the Web site end-user experience of a vast number of English tourism destinations, both local and regional ones. Following recent research in the field, this paper evaluates destinations' online communication based on the implemented Web site features and on the effectiveness of the communication itself, borrowing its research methodology from different domains. After content and functionality analysis, a user-experience, scenario-based investigation has been carried out, which demonstrated that complex Web sites do not always serve end-users' needs properly; in other words, Web site complexity is not directly related with good user experience. This research may help destination managers to foster their online communication if they have fewer content and functionalities but are better focused and clearly user-oriented. © 2014 Taylor & Francis

Domain wall displacement in Py square ring for single nanometric magnetic bead detection

A new approach based on the domain wall displacement in confined ferromagnetic nanostructures for attracting and sensing a single nanometric magnetic particles is presented. We modeled and experimentally demonstrated the viability of the approach using an anisotropic magnetoresistance device made by a micron-size square ring of Permalloy designed for application in magnetic storage. This detection concept can be suitable to biomolecular recognition, and in particular to single molecule detection.Comment: 8pages, 3figure

Does ozonation enhance activated carbon adsorption of PFAS in textile wastewater?

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are used in numerous industrial applications, such as in textile manufacturing, because of their special chemical properties. To avoid PFAS spread in the environment, removal strategies need to be implemented at the wastewater treatment plants (WWTP) to reduce their environmental risk on receiving water bodies. The fate of 14 PFAS in a full-scale WWTP treating textile and civil wastewater (WW) was investigated. The addition of an adsorption step before or after the ozonation process was studied through adsorption isotherms tested on the WW collected before and after the full-scale ozonation step. Ozonation is not aimed at PFAS removing, but it lowers organic matter competition towards long-chain PFAS in the following adsorption step. The removal of UVA254 seems to be a good proxy variable for PFAS adsorption, with relationships not dependent on the presence of ozonation step

Drinking water recontamination in distribution networks: the case of bisphenol A release from epoxy resins

Monitoring and management of drinking water distribution networks (DWDNs), including possible release from materials in contact with drinking water (DW), have been stressed as crucial to avoid DW re-contamination leading to a potential increase of human health risk. Recent scientific studies and regulations clearly highlighted the release of bisphenol A (BPA) from plastic materials used to renovate DWDNs pipelines as one the major hazardous events. Lab tests on three epoxy resins were designed with the Design of Experiments (DoE) method to calibrate a migration model. In order to predict water quality variation in DWDNs, the migration model was combined with a hydraulic model, through EPANET-MSX, and validated in relevant environmental conditions, in collaboration with an Italian water utility. The model allowed to simulate BPA propagation in the DWDN identifying the most vulnerable areas and permitting to customize a site-specific monitoring and intervention plan to minimize the risk

PFAS in textile wastewater: an integrated approach to reduce the environmental risk for their mixture

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), used in several industrial applications, are gaining increasing concern due to their spread in the environment, their stability and eco-toxicity. To avoid PFAS spread in the environment, reducing the environmental risk on receiving water bodies, removal strategies need to be implemented at both industrial and municipal wastewater treatment plants (WWTP). This study presents a case study in a textile district in northern Italy where PFAS monitoring campaigns were combined with testing at lab and pilot-scale of two promising removal processes (membrane separation, adsorption on activated carbon) and data used for environmental risk assessment. This combination was proved to be useful to support the identification of the optimal combination of prevention and treatment interventions to be applied at different system points to reduce the environmental risk

Adsorption on activated carbon for PFAS removal: should we act at the source or before the discharge into the environment?

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), used in several industrial applications, such as textile production, are gaining increasing concern due to their spread in the environment, their stability and eco-toxicity. To avoid PFAS spread in the environment, removal strategies need to be implemented at both industrial and municipal wastewater treatment plants (WWTP). This study presents a case study in a textile district in northern Italy where PFAS removal in wastewater (WW) through adsorption on activated carbon was tested at lab and pilot-scale at different points of the system (textile companies and municipal WW treatment plant). This lab-testing was proved to be useful to identify where to apply such process in the system and to optimize process configuration and operating conditions