Investigation into catalytic potential of marble powder in catalytic ozonation of Reactive Black 5

Background and Aims: Synthetic dyes especially azo dyes are, nowadays, used by the majority of industries for dyeing various materials. In addition to producing color in receiving streams, these dyes may have adverse health effects on human. This study was carried out to investigate the catalytic ozonation with marble powder in the removal of reactive black 5.Materials and Methods: Marble powder was supplied from Hamadan workshops stonemason. The powder was grinded and sieved to the desired particle size using standard mesh 40. Batch degradation and mineralization studies were performed as a function of pH, adsorbent dose and the influence of catalytic potential of marble powder. Residual dye concentrations were spectrophotometrically measured at 597 nm. In order to comply with ethical principles, in this study, all entries with the references noted.Results: Reduction of 98% of reactive black 5 was observed when 0.3g catalyst was employed per liter of solution during 20 minutes at pH 10 and in the presence of 50 mg dye. The catalytic potential of marble was 54%. Conclusion: Results from this study demonstrated the potential utility of marble powder as an effective catalyst in catalytic ozonation process.Key words: Catalytic Potential, Marble Powder, Reactive Dye, Catalytic Ozonatio

Evaluation of the effectiveness of electro-coagulation-flotation process for removal toxicity of olive oil mill wastewater

Background: The olive oil mill wastewater is one of the contaminating food industrial wastewaters. Olive oil extraction process imports wastewater with high phenolic chemicals into the environment. In this study the toxicity of raw olive oil mill wastewater and the effluent of electro-coagulation have been investigated.Material & Methods: Germination test was used for evaluating the toxicity of wastewater and effluent process. Electro-coagulation-flotation examinations performed in a plexiglas electrochemical reactor with 1750 ml practical volume. 4 blades of aluminum and titanium as anode and cathode electrodes with a gap of 2 cm were connected to DC power supply in monopolar parallel mode.Results: Based on the information from this study, the pollution load of phenolic compounds in olive oil mill wastewater is 1000 times more than municipal wastewater. Also, the evaluation toxicity of effluent obtained from the process in natural pH of wastewater (pH=5.2), 117 mA/m2 current density and 30 minutes time process, suggests that the effluent causes plant species growth, even without dilution.Conclusion: The results obtained from this research can warn us to the risks of releasing these wastewaters without treatment and toxic effects on the different species of plants. Results demonstrated although using of electro-coagulation-flotation process removes high percent of pollutants of olive oil mill wastewater, but, it can’t attain the discharge limitations, then it should be more treated with some other methods.Key words: Toxicity, Electro-Coagulation-Flotation, Olive Wastewate

Online Parameter Estimation for Supercapacitor State-of-Energy and State-of-Health Determination in Vehicular Applications

WOS:000536291000079Online accurate estimation of supercapacitor state-of-health (SoH) and state-of-energy (SoE) is essential to achieve efficient energy management and real-time condition monitoring in electric vehicle (EV) applications. In this article, for the first time, unscented Kalman filter (UKF) is used for online parameter and state estimation of the supercapacitor. In the proposed method, a nonlinear state-space model of the supercapacitor is developed, which takes the capacitance variation and self-discharge effects into account. The observability of the considered model is analytically confirmed using a graphical approach. The SoH and SoE are then estimated based on the supercapacitor online identified model with the designed UKF. The proposed method provides better estimation accuracy over Kalman filter (KF) and extended KF algorithms since the linearization errors during the filtering process are avoided. The effectiveness of the proposed approach is demonstrated through several experiments on a laboratory testbed. An overall estimation error below 0.5% is achieved with the proposed method. In addition, hardware-in-the-loop experiments are conducted and real-time feasibility of the proposed method is guaranteed

Evaluation of Measles, Rubella, Mumps, Hepatitis B and Varicella Zoster Antibodies in Medical and Dental Students in Shiraz, Iran

 Measles, rubella, mumps, hepatitis B virus (HBV) and varicella zoster virus (VZV) cause infectious diseases that can be effectively prevented by vaccination. Vaccination of medical students is important, because they are more likely to become exposed and infected by these viruses. A total of 180 students, consisting of 90 women and 90 men, were serologically screened for measles, rubella and mumps, HBV and VZV antibodies. Their sera were examined for Immunoglobulin G (IgG) antibody against these viruses by using ELISA IgG kits. Total antibody against measles, rubella, mumps, HBV and VZV were 52%, 100%, 76%, 68% and 15% respectively. There was no significant difference in antibodies level according to gender.The results of this study indicate vaccination is vital for medical student prior to hospital training

Effect of coagulation and sonication on the dissolved air flotation (DAF) process for thickening of biological sludge in wastewater treatment

Background: Dissolved air floatation (DAF) is one of the methods has been used for the sludge thickening in wastewater treatment plants. This study aimed to investigate the effects of coagulation and sonication processes as additional configurations on the efficiency of a lab-scale DAF process for thickening of the biological sludge of an industrial wastewater treatment plant in Kashan, Iran. Methods: The required amounts of sludge samples were collected from a wastewater treatment plant and kept at temperature of 4°C. Variables, such as pressure (3, 5, and 7 atm), flotation time (5 and 10 minutes), ultrasonic irradiation power (0, 75, and 150 W), and presence/absence of Fe-based coagulant were considered on a sequencing batch reactor (SBR) included coagulation, flotation, and sonication processes, respectively. Results: The use of ultrasonic waves led to an insignificant increase in the DAF efficiency (P > 0.05), however, the application of coagulant significantly increased the thickening efficiency (P < 0.05). The maximum efficiency of the process was achieved at flotation time of 5 min, pressure of 3 atm, and sonication power of 75 W. Conclusion: According to the results, DAF has a proper efficiency for thickening of biological sludge. Coagulation compared to sonication has a greater effect on the efficiency of the process. Keywords: Ultrasonic waves, Industrial effluent, Dissolved air flotation, Sonicatio

Global burden of chronic respiratory diseases and risk factors, 1990–2019: an update from the Global Burden of Disease Study 2019

Background: Updated data on chronic respiratory diseases (CRDs) are vital in their prevention, control, and treatment in the path to achieving the third UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), a one-third reduction in premature mortality from non-communicable diseases by 2030. We provided global, regional, and national estimates of the burden of CRDs and their attributable risks from 1990 to 2019. Methods: Using data from the Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors Study (GBD) 2019, we estimated mortality, years lived with disability, years of life lost, disability-adjusted life years (DALYs), prevalence, and incidence of CRDs, i.e. chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), asthma, pneumoconiosis, interstitial lung disease and pulmonary sarcoidosis, and other CRDs, from 1990 to 2019 by sex, age, region, and Socio-demographic Index (SDI) in 204 countries and territories. Deaths and DALYs from CRDs attributable to each risk factor were estimated according to relative risks, risk exposure, and the theoretical minimum risk exposure level input. Findings: In 2019, CRDs were the third leading cause of death responsible for 4.0 million deaths (95% uncertainty interval 3.6–4.3) with a prevalence of 454.6 million cases (417.4–499.1) globally. While the total deaths and prevalence of CRDs have increased by 28.5% and 39.8%, the age-standardised rates have dropped by 41.7% and 16.9% from 1990 to 2019, respectively. COPD, with 212.3 million (200.4–225.1) prevalent cases, was the primary cause of deaths from CRDs, accounting for 3.3 million (2.9–3.6) deaths. With 262.4 million (224.1–309.5) prevalent cases, asthma had the highest prevalence among CRDs. The age-standardised rates of all burden measures of COPD, asthma, and pneumoconiosis have reduced globally from 1990 to 2019. Nevertheless, the age-standardised rates of incidence and prevalence of interstitial lung disease and pulmonary sarcoidosis have increased throughout this period. Low- and low-middle SDI countries had the highest age-standardised death and DALYs rates while the high SDI quintile had the highest prevalence rate of CRDs. The highest deaths and DALYs from CRDs were attributed to smoking globally, followed by air pollution and occupational risks. Non-optimal temperature and high body-mass index were additional risk factors for COPD and asthma, respectively. Interpretation: Albeit the age-standardised prevalence, death, and DALYs rates of CRDs have decreased, they still cause a substantial burden and deaths worldwide. The high death and DALYs rates in low and low-middle SDI countries highlights the urgent need for improved preventive, diagnostic, and therapeutic measures. Global strategies for tobacco control, enhancing air quality, reducing occupational hazards, and fostering clean cooking fuels are crucial steps in reducing the burden of CRDs, especially in low- and lower-middle income countries

Integration of coagulation and electro-activated HSO5− to treat pulp and paper wastewater

Pulp and paper wastewater (PPW) is classified as complex wastewater that contains high concentrations of recalcitrant pollutants. In this study, the integration of coagulation process and electro-activated peroxymonosulfate (PMS) were tested to treat PPW. FeCl3, aluminum sulfate and poly aluminum chloride were examined for chemical oxygen demand (COD) removal from PPW. Amongst the coagulants, FeCl3 showed higher performance compared to other coagulants in which 55% of COD was removed under the conditions of natural pH of 6.9 and FeCl3 dosage of 100 mg L−1. Coagulation-treated wastewater by FeCl3 was treated by electro-activated PMS. Under the condition of 0.75 mA cm−2 current density, 6.0 mM PMS and 60 min reaction time, 53% of COD was further eliminated. To compare with electro-Fenton, electro-activated PMS provided higher COD removal and specific oxidant efficiency. Integration of coagulation (FeCl3) and electro-activated PMS enhanced the biodegradability of PPW based on biochemical oxygen demand/COD index. The results showed that integrated chemical and electrochemical processes can be used as a pretreatment for biological process

Effects of Acute Fatigue of the Tibialis Anterior Due to a Weight-Bearing Muscle Activity on the Ankle Joint Position Sense in Healthy Subjects

Background: Joint position sense (JPS) is comprised of sensory input from several sources, including skin, joint capsule/ligaments, and muscular receptors. If the muscle receptors play a leading role in detecting joint position awareness, then muscle fatigue might yield a declination in JPS. The aim of this study was to evaluate if a sustained fatiguing contraction of the tibialis anterior (ankle dorsiflexor) could alter the ankle JPS. Methods: This was a cross-sectional study in which 40 healthy subjects (age, 23.9±2.3 years; height, 172.6±5.7 cm; weight, 67.8±4.7 kg) were recruited. Subjects were asked to recognize 2 pre-recognized positions (10° in dorsiflexion (DF) and 21° in plantarflexion (PF)) for 2 experimental conditions: normal and fatigued. Muscular fatigue was induced in the tibialis anterior of the dominant leg by using an isometric test. The average of the absolute angular error (AAE) deviations from the target positions of three trials were recorded as scores for both fatigue and non-fatigue conditions. Results: There was significant decrease in subjects’ abilities to recognize active and passive repositioning of their ankle after a fatigue protocol (P=0.0001). Conclusion: The acuity of the ankle JPS is reduced subsequent to a fatigue protocol

INVESTIGATING AND IDENTIFYING EFFECTIVE FACTORS IN MEASURING OF META-COMPETENCE IN ACCOUNTANTS

The qualifications needed by professions are changing rapidly in today's changing world, and the accounting system, as the vital artery of companies, requires employees with specific skills and capabilities to carry out their profession and career. All accountants need professional competencies to effectively implement their job and profession, and measuring and evaluating these competencies is of great importance to employers. The purpose of this study is to Investigating and Identifying Effective Factors in Measuring of accountants' meta-competence in Iran considering the accountants' role in the success of companies. The statistical population of the present research is consisted of the experts including university professors in the field of accounting as well as public accountants in Iran. The randomized sampling method was used to select the sample. This present study is a fundamental research in terms of the purpose, and qualitative in term of the data type. Also, the interview method and the questionnaire were used in data collection. In the first step of this research, a questionnaire was drafted using theoretical foundations and interviews with experts. Then, by completing 252 questionnaires by experts in the second and third quarter of 2017, relevant data was collected and this data were analyzed using exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis. The main question of the research is that 'what factors are appropriate and important for measuring the accountants' meta-competence?'. According to the research findings, Influencing/Persuading, Teamwork/relationship building, Critical/analytical thinking, Self/time management, Leadership, See bigger picture, Presentation, and Communication are appropriate for the measurement of the accountants' meta-competence and the effect of these factors on the accountants' meta-competence is significant and positive.JEL: M40, M41, M49  Article visualizations