Using demand side management to adapt to water scarcity and climate change in the Saïss basin, Morocco

The Saïss Sub-Basin surface waters are greatly reduced, and will be completely depleted within 25 years. Climate Change and Training workshops directly led to the formation of the Zoubiya cooperative by local farmers. Members pooled their resources to create a water reservoir and drip irrigation systems thereby increasing the adaptive capacity of the region in response to water shortages. Drip irrigation results in water savings of about fifty percent per unit of crop yield. This project worked with multiple stakeholders and focused on benefits for the most vulnerable and disadvantaged communities within project sites, such as contract herders and women

Hybrid Nanomaterials Based on Anionic Clays for Application to Water Dichlorophenoxyacetate and-Purification: Cases of 2,4 chlorobenzenesulfonate-4

The elimination of the herbicide 2,4dichlorophenoxycetic acid (2,4D) and the surfactant 4chlorobenzenesulfonic acid (4CBS) from aqueous solutions by the layered double hydroxides (LDHs) through anion exchange and/or adsorption proved to be effective. The interaction of LDHs with these pollutants was investigated by a combination of spectroscopic and physico-chemical methods. Treatment of solutions containing variable concentrations of 2,4D and 4CBS led to their elimination with an uptake ratio of up to 98% for 2,4D and 95% for 4CBS. Infrared spectroscopy and X-ray diffraction indicated that this maximum of retention corresponds to an elimination of the pollutants by exchange reactions, leading to their intercalation between the LDH layers, in addition to adsorption. Thermal decomposition of LDHs samples used in water purification experiments, coupled with mass spectrometry analysis of the evolved gases, allowed to confirm the organic-inorganic hybrid character of the materials.The elimination of the herbicide 2,4dichlorophenoxycetic acid (2,4D) and the surfactant 4chlorobenzenesulfonic acid (4CBS) from aqueous solutions by the layered double hydroxides (LDHs) through anion exchange and/or adsorption proved to be effective. The interaction of LDHs with these pollutants was investigated by a combination of spectroscopic and physico-chemical methods. Treatment of solutions containing variable concentrations of 2,4D and 4CBS led to their elimination with an uptake ratio of up to 98% for 2,4D and 95% for 4CBS. Infrared spectroscopy and X-ray diffraction indicated that this maximum of retention corresponds to an elimination of the pollutants by exchange reactions, leading to their intercalation between the LDH layers, in addition to adsorption. Thermal decomposition of LDHs samples used in water purification experiments, coupled with mass spectrometry analysis of the evolved gases, allowed to confirm the organic-inorganic hybrid character of the materials

Removal of Pesticides from Water by Anionic Clays

The exchange of chloride ions by ions from the pesticide family 2.4-dichlorophe- noxyacetate (2.4D) in ?Zn-Al-Cl? anionic clay was investigated by X-ray diffraction and infrared spectroscopy. The effects of 2.4D concentration in solution and temperature on the ion exchange were studied. The best sample in terms of crystallinity, was obtained at 100 °C with a 2.4D concentration corresponding to the solubility limit of the ion in water. This sample was further characterised by chemical analyses and scanning electron microscopy. The anion intercalation was effected without degradation of the pesticide anion

Removal of Chromate Ions from Water by Anionicc CLAYS

The removal of chromate ions from aqueous solutions by [Mg-Al-Cl], [Zn-Al-Cl] and [Zn-Cr-Cl] anionic clays was investigated. The solids, prepared by coprecipitation at constant pH, were found to be pure upon characterisation by X-ray diffraction and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy. The interaction of the solid materials with CrO42- ions has been studied by UV-visible spectroscopy. The treatment of solutions containing 15 to 300 ppm of CrO42- was successful. The sorption capacities of the anionic clays for the CrO42- ions are close to 1 mmol/g

Production and characterization of granular activated carbon from activated sludge

In this study, activated sludge was used as a precursor to prepare activated carbon using sulfuric acid as a chemical activation agent. The effect of preparation conditions on the produced activated carbon characteristics as an adsorbent was investigated. The results indicate that the produced activated carbon has a highly porous structure and a specific surface area of 580 m²/g. The FT-IR analysis depicts the presence of a variety of functional groups which explain its improved adsorption behavior against pesticides. The XRD analysis reveals that the produced activated carbon has low content of inorganic constituents compared with the precursor. The adsorption isotherm data were fitted to three adsorption isotherm models and found to closely fit the BET model with R² equal 0.948 at pH 3, indicating a multilayer of pesticide adsorption. The maximum loading capacity of the produced activated carbon was 110 mg pesticides/g adsorbent and was obtained at this pH value. This maximum loading was found experimentally to steeply decrease as the solution pH increases. The obtained results show that activated sludge is a promising low cost precursor for the production of activated carbon