Unemployment and ill health: a connection through inflammation?

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Unemployment is a source of acute and long-term psychosocial stress. Acute and chronic psychosocial stress can induce pronounced changes in human immune responses. In this study we tested our hypothesis that stress-induced low-grade tissue inflammation is more prevalent among the unemployed.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>We determined the inflammatory status of 225 general population subjects below the general retirement age (65 years in Finland). Those who had levels of both interleukin-6 (≥ 0.97 pg/mL) and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (≥ 1.49 mg/L) above the median were assessed to have an elevated inflammatory status (n = 72).</p> <p>Results</p> <p>An elevated inflammatory status was more common among the unemployed than among other study participants (59% versus 30%, p = 0.011). In the final multivariate model, those who were unemployed had over five-fold greater odds for having an elevated inflammatory status (OR 5.20, 95% CI 1.55-17.43, p = 0.008).</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>This preliminary finding suggests that stress-induced low-grade inflammation might be a link between unemployment and ill health.</p

Sense of coherence and diabetes: A prospective occupational cohort study

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Sense of coherence (SOC) is an individual characteristic related to a positive life orientation leading to effective coping. A weak SOC has been associated with indicators of general morbidity and mortality. However, the relationship between SOC and diabetes has not been studied in prospective design. The present study prospectively examined the relationship between a weak SOC and the incidence of diabetes.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>The relationship between a weak SOC and the incidence of diabetes was investigated among 5827 Finnish male employees aged 18–65 at baseline (1986). SOC was measured by questionnaire survey at baseline. Data on prescription diabetes drugs from 1987 to 2004 were obtained from the Drug Imbursement Register held by the Social Insurance Institution.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>During the follow-up, 313 cases of diabetes were recorded. A weak SOC was associated with a 46% higher risk of diabetes in participants who had been =<50 years of age on entry into the study. This association was independent of age, education, marital status, psychological distress, self-rated health, smoking status, binge drinking and physical activity. No similar association was observed in older employees.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>The results suggest that besides focusing on well-known risk factors for diabetes, strengthening SOC in employees of =<50 years of age can also play a role in attempts to tackle increasing rates of diabetes.</p

Catalytic wet air oxidation of industrial wastewaters:oxidation of bisphenol A over cerium supported metal catalysts

Abstract The large amounts of industrial wastewaters, contaminated by hazardous and toxic compounds together with ever tightening legislation, have challenged traditional wastewater treatment methods. Therefore, the development of discharge limits under, cost-effective and ecological wastewater treatment has become an essential concern. Catalytic water phase technologies are interesting alternatives for traditional wastewater treatment. Among them catalytic wet air oxidation (CWAO) has been used successfully in the management of various industrial effluents. However, the development of an active and stable catalyst for the severe reaction conditions of CWAO has proved truly challenging. The aim of this thesis was to study the activity and stability of laboratory prepared cerium supported metal catalysts in the catalytic wet air and wet peroxide oxidation of aqueous organic pollutants. Ru supported on Ce-Zr mixed oxides and commercial activated carbon as reference were used in CWAO and catalytic wet peroxide oxidation (CWPO) of surface plating industry wastewater. Ag/Ce-Zr and Pt/Ce-Ti catalysts were catalyzed CWAO of aqueous solution of bisphenol A (BPA). Both CWAO and CWPO improved the abatement of organic compounds from surface plating industry wastewater when comparing the non-catalytic experiments. Moreover, catalytic oxidation enhanced the biodegradability of organic matter in the wastewaters. According to the results, Pt/Ce-Ti catalysts performed with higher activity in CWAO of BPA than Ag/Ce-Zr catalysts and almost 100% removal of BPA was achieved. The leaching of active metal during oxidation experiments affected the activity of Ag/Ce-Zr catalysts. Moreover, CWAO of BPA was not a surface area specific reaction but the activity of catalysts was related to the chemisorbed oxygen content on the catalysts’ surface. The results of this thesis showed that cerium supported metal catalysts are active and stable catalysts in CWAO of BPA and also in the treatment of industrial wastewater. Therefore, these catalysts could be applied next to pilot scale applications.Tiivistelmä Teollisuuden jätevedet sisältävät usein haitallisia ja myrkyllisiä yhdisteitä, joiden käsittely perinteisillä jäteveden käsittelymenetelmillä on hyvin haastavaa. Lisäksi alati kiristyvä ympäristölainsäädäntö asettaa omat vaatimuksensa jäteveden käsittelylle. Katalyyttiset vedenkäsittelymenetelmät ovat viime vuosina herättäneet paljon kiinnostusta. Yksi lupaavimmista tekniikoista on katalyyttinen märkähapetus, jota on käytetty sekä lukuisten malliaineiden että teollisten jätevesien käsittelyssä. Märkähapetuksen vaativissa reaktio-olosuhteissa aktiivisena säilyvän katalyyttimateriaalin kehittäminen on kuitenkin osoittautunut varsin haasteelliseksi. Väitöskirjatutkimuksen tavoitteena oli kehittää aktiivisia ja kestäviä ceriumpohjaisia katalyyttimateriaaleja märkähapetusreaktioon. Tutkimuksessa valmistettiin Ru-, Pt- ja Ag-katalyyttejä, jotka impregnoitiin Ce-Zr- ja Ce-Ti-sekaoksideille. Ru/Ce-Zr-katalyyttejä sekä kaupallista aktiivihiiltä vertailumateriaalina käytettiin pintakäsittelyteollisuuden jäteveden märkähapetuksessa ja märkäperoksidihapetuksessa. Bisfenoli A:n (BPA) vesiliuoksen märkähapetusta katalysoitiin sekä Ag/Ce-Zr- että Pt/Ce-Ti-katalyyteillä. Katalyyttisellä märkähapetuksella ja märkäperoksidihapetuksella pintakäsittelyteollisuuden jäteveden orgaanisten yhdisteiden konsentraatio väheni enemmän verrattuna ilman katalyyttiä suoritettuihin hapetuksiin. Lisäksi käsitellyn vesinäytteen biohajoavuusaste nousi eli jäteveden sisältämät orgaaniset yhdisteet olivat hapettuneet helpommin biohajoavaan muotoon. Pt/Ce-Ti-katalyytit olivat Ag/Ce-Zr-katalyyttejä aktiivisempia BPA:n märkähapetusreaktiossa. Pt-katalyyttisessä reaktiossa saavutettiin lähes 100 % reduktio BPA:n pitoisuudessa. Ag-katalyyttien aktiivisuuteen vaikutti hopean osittainen liukeneminen hapetettavaan liuokseen märkähapetusreaktion aikana. Lisäksi havaittiin, että BPA:n märkähapetusreaktiossa katalyytin aktiivisuus oli riippuvainen katalyyttipintaan kemiallisesti sitoutuneen hapen määrästä eikä niinkään katalyytin pinta-alasta. Väitöskirjatutkimuksessa saatujen tulosten perusteella valmistetut ceriumpohjaiset metallikatalyytit olivat aktiivisia ja kestäviä. Katalysoiduissa hapetusreaktiossa sekä BPA:n että pintakäsittelyteollisuuden jäteveden orgaaninen kuormitus pieneni. Siksi valmistettuja katalyyttimateriaaleja voitaisiin tutkia seuraavaksi pilotti-mittakaavan sovellutuksissa

Combination of peracetic acid dosing with diffused aeration in municipal wastewater treatment

Abstract Wastewater aeration is an important unit operation that provides dissolved oxygen for microorganisms in wastewater treatment. In this study, the impact of peracetic acid (PAA) dosing on wastewater aeration was assessed in terms of oxygen transfer, visual observation of bubble size changes, and evolution of dissolved oxygen from PAA (and H₂O₂) decomposition. Oxygen transfer coefficients improved with PAA concentrations of up to 7 mg/L, which was probably due to the smaller bubbles being formed from the aeration diffuser and evolution of small bubbles from PAA (and H₂O₂) decomposition. At a PAA concentration higher than 7 mg/L, the accumulation of acetate molecules to the gas–liquid interface of bubbles likely began to counteract the positive impact of bubble size decrease by increasing the mass transfer resistance of oxygen from bubbles to water. Finally, a continuous bench-scale primary effluent aeration experiment demonstrated that at a continuous PAA dosing of 1 mg/L, the air input by a compressor could be decreased by 54%, while keeping the oxygen level constant at approximately 1.5 mg/L. PAA dosing could be combined, for example, with aerated grit removal to enhance the primary effluent aeration together with additional benefits of partial disinfection and odor formation prevention

Alkali-activated materials as catalysts for water purification

Abstract In this study, novel and cost-effective alkali-activated materials (AAMs) for catalytic applications were developed by using an industrial side stream, i.e., blast furnace slag (BFS). AAMs can be prepared from aluminosilicate precursors under mild conditions (room temperature using non-hazardous chemicals). AAMs were synthesized by mixing BFS and a 50 wt % sodium hydroxide (NaOH) solution at different BFS/NaOH ratios. The pastes were poured into molds, followed by consolidation at 20 or 60 °C. As the active metal, Fe was impregnated into the prepared AAMs by ion exchange. The prepared materials were examined as catalysts for the catalytic wet peroxide oxidation (CWPO) of a bisphenol A (BPA) aqueous solution. As-prepared AAMs exhibited a moderate surface area and mesoporous structure, and they exhibited moderate activity for the CWPO of BPA, while the iron ion-exchanged, BFS-based catalyst (Fe/BFS30-60) exhibited the maximum removal of BPA (50%) during 3 h of oxidation at pH 3.5 at 70 °C. Therefore, these new, inexpensive, AAM-based catalysts could be interesting alternatives for catalytic wastewater treatment applications

Reliability of biodegradation measurements for inhibitive industrial wastewaters

Abstract Industrial wastewaters may contain toxic or highly inhibitive compounds, which makes the measurement of biological oxygen demand (BOD) challenging. Due to the high concentration of organic compounds within them, industrial wastewater samples must be diluted to perform BOD measurements. This study focused on determining the reliability of wastewater BOD measurement using two different types of industrial wastewater, namely pharmaceutical wastewater containing a total organic carbon (TOC) value of 34,000 mg(C)/L and industrial paper manufacturing wastewater containing a corresponding TOC value of 30 mg(C)/L. Both manometric respirometry and the closed-bottle method were used in the study, and the results were compared. It was found that the dilution wastewaters containing inhibitive compounds affected BOD values, which increased due to the decreased inhibiting effect of wastewater pollutants. Therefore, the correct BOD for effluents should be measured from undiluted samples, while the diluted value is appropriate for determining the maximum value for biodegradable organic material in the effluent. The accuracy of the results from the blank samples was also examined, and it was found that the readings of these were different to those from the samples. Therefore, the blank value that must be subtracted may differ depending on the sample

Efficient removal of bisphenol A from wastewaters:catalytic wet air oxidation with Pt catalysts supported on Ce and Ce–Ti mixed oxides

Abstract Catalytic wet air oxidation (CWAO) of an aqueous solution of bisphenol A (BPA) was investigated at 160 ℃ and 2.0 MPa of air in a batch reactor. Activity of supported platinum catalysts (2.5 wt%), prepared by wet impregnation, was compared with pure cerium and cerium–titanium oxide catalysts. Supported platinum catalysts showed higher activities in the removal of BPA than pure CeO2, Ce0.8Ti0.2O2 and Ce0.2Ti0.8O2. The oxidation reaction was followed the pseudo-first order rate law and the highest BPA removal, 97% and 95%, was achieved with Pt/CeO2 and Pt/Ce0.8Ti0.2O2 catalysts respectively. The CWAO of BPA aqueous solution was not a surface area specific reaction but the more important factor affecting the activity of studied catalysts was the amount of chemisorbed oxygen of these samples

Preparation and characterisation of alkali-activated blast furnace slag and Na-jarosite catalysts for catalytic wet peroxide oxidation of bisphenol A

Abstract In this study, cost-effective alkali-activated materials made from industrial side streams (blast furnace slag and Na-jarosite) were developed for catalytic applications. The catalytic activity of the prepared materials was examined in catalytic wet peroxide oxidation reactions of a bisphenol A in an aqueous solution. All materials prepared revealed porous structure and characterisation expressed the incorporation of iron to the material via ion exchange in the preparation step. Furthermore, the materials prepared exhibited high specific surface areas (over 200 m²/g) and were mainly mesoporous. Moderate bisphenol A removal percentages (35%–37%) were achieved with the prepared materials during 3 h of oxidation at pH 7–8 and 50°C. Moreover, the activity of catalysts remained after four consecutive cycles (between the cycles the catalysts were regenerated) and the specific surface areas decreased only slightly and no changes in the phase structures were observed. Thus, the prepared blast furnace slag and Na-jarosite-based catalysts exhibited high mechanical stability and showed good potential in the removal of bisphenol A from wastewater through catalytic wet peroxide oxidation