Designing Building Skins with Biomaterials

This chapter presents several successful examples of biomaterial facade design. It discusses facade function from aesthetical, functional, and safety perspectives. Special focus is directed on novel concepts for adaptation and special functionalities of facades. Analysis of the structure morphologies and aesthetic impressions related to the bio-based building facades is supported with photographs collected by authors in various locations. Finally, particular adaptations and special functionalities of bio-based facades going beyond traditional building envelope concept are supported by selected case studies

Ability of Plants to Clean Soils Contaminated by Heavy Metals

The objective of our paper is to show ability of different plants and different growing strategies to extract metals from contaminated soils including soil properties suitable for acceptable soil phytoextraction

Storing, Transporting and Pre-treating of Contaminated Biomass

The proposed technology is a unique method evaluating decrease of risk element release into environment while the contaminated biomass is transported, stored and pre-treated. This biomass was produced on phytoextraction plantations for further energetic purposes

THE EFFICIENCY OF ACTIVITY-AIDED TEACHING USING AN E-LEARNING PROGRAM IN AGROCHEMISTRY AS A BACHELOR DEGREE SUBJECT

The activity-aided teaching using e-learning program was assessed in students’ training in Agrochemistry subject in the first year of bachelor degree study at the Faculty of Agrobiology, Food and Natural Resources of Czech University of Life Sciences Prague. The e-learning program integrated with active methods had greater efficiency in the students’ education than in classical, formal teaching. The study was achieved on two groups of students; control group (with classical teaching) and tested group (with activated teaching). Students were distributed into groups randomly and the input knowledge in chemistry followed the Gaussian distribution. Basic students’ knowledge on general chemistry was very low on the average and did not correspond with the curricular programs for secondary schools established in the Czech Republic. Activated methods of Agrochemistry teaching consisted mainly from motivation, regularly repetition connected with homework and from usage of e-learning program for self-study. The teaching effectiveness was proved by students’ score from three particular tests and by effective progression and by relative progression. The score from particular tests was related to the score from the entrance test. There were two coefficients of the students’ progression defined properly, and are applicable for a numerical or percentage value. Students from the tested group achieved statistically significantly (α = 0.05) higher scores (186 points) than students in the control group (136 points) in all three particular tests. Evaluation according to effective progression and relative progression proved the higher progress in the tested group compare to the control group. The evaluation of teaching efficiency can be proved by effective as well relative progression. The effective progression was 55 % in tested group and 26 % in control group. Higher significance of tested students’ progression was shown on relative progression; 64 % in tested students and 19 % in control students. The e-learning teaching integrated with active methods can be recommended for higher education

The ash quality monitoring of biomass combustion

The aim of methodology was, on the basis of results of analyzes of ash from more than 40 sources in the Czech Republic, these ash categorize by feedstock and identify suitable ash for use on agricultural land. It could lead to a significant shift to reduce the cost of incinerators, to the entry of new businesses on the market and to easier fulfilling of republican obligations in the share of energy production from renewable sources. Another advantage of finding employment for these materials, from an environmental view, is the reduction of landfilling and support for recycling of nutrients. The methodology presented the process for the selection of suitable ash for agricultural purposes and the reader should be able to determine the applicability of the material

The risk element uptake by chamomile (Matricaria recutita (L.) Rauschert) growing in four different soils

German chamomile (Matricaria recutita (L.) Rauschert) belongs to the plants with a high tolerance to toxic elements. The ability of chamomile to accumulate risk elements was tested in a pot experiment in which four soils contaminated by different levels of arsenic (As), cadmium (Cd), lead (Pb), and zinc (Zn), differing in their physicochemical parameters, were used. The element mobility in the soils was affected predominantly by the cation exchange capacity (CEC) of the soils. Whereas As, Pb, and Zn were retained in roots, Cd showed good ability to translocate to the shoots, including anthodia, even in extremely Cd-contaminated soil without symptoms of phytotoxicity. The bioaccumulation factor for Cd calculated as the ratio of element content in the plant and the soil was the highest among the investigated elements. Between 5.5 and 35% of the total Cd was released to infusion, and its extractability decreased with increasing Cd content in anthodia. The essential oil composition suggested an alteration of the abundance of the individual compounds. However, no detectable contents of risk elements were found in the oil. Chamomile can be recommended as a suitable alternative crop for risk element-contaminated soils tested within this experiment, but only for production of essential oil

Zachowanie Cd, Cr, Cu, Pb i Zn w glebach napływowej i brunatnej nawożonych kompostami

Risk elements contents play important role in compost quality determination. The aim of the work was to evaluate main risk elements availability in two soils with various parameters after composts application. The changes of risk elements mobility in soils fertilized with composts differed in dependence on soil parameters (risk elements contamination of soil, clay particles content, organic matter content and pH value) and on used extraction agent. Cadmium, zinc and partly chromium extracted in 0.01 mol o dm^-3 CaCl2 solution were immobilized and lead was released to soil solution of both soils. The remediation ability of composts in cadmium and lead contaminated soil was found only for cadmium.Zawartość pierwiastków szkodliwych odgrywa ważną rolę w wyznaczaniu jakości kompostu. Celem badań była ocena przyswajalności głównych pierwiastków szkodliwych w dwóch glebach o różnych parametrach po zastosowaniu kompostów. Zmiany mobilności tych pierwiastków w glebach nawożonych kompostami różniły się w zależności od właściwości gleby (zanieczyszczenia gleb pierwiastkami szkodliwymi, zawartości frakcji iłu, zawartości materii organicznej i wartości pH) i od użytego odczynnika ekstrakcyjnego. Kadm, cynk i częściowo chrom ekstrahowane roztworem 0,01 mol CaCl2 o dm^-3 były unieruchamiane, a ołów był uwalniany do roztworu glebowego obydwu gleb. Zdolność remediacyjną kompostu w glebach zanieczyszczonych kadmem i ołowiem stwierdzono tylko w przypadku kadmu

Efficiency of extractants to release As, Cd and Zn from main soil compartments

Various soil extraction methods were developed for the determination of total and/or plant-available concentrations of potentially toxic elements. In this experiment, four single extraction procedures (aqua regia, HNO$_3$, acetic acid, DTPA) were tested for the determination of extractable contents of As, Cd and Zn. 35 soils differing in their physicochemical properties and in total element contents were used in this experiment. Extractability of elements from soil samples varied following the individual elements and/or extraction agents used. The strong acids were not able to release the elements tightly bound into the silicate sample matrix. However, such techniques remain utilizable for the approximate determination of “pseudototal” element contents in soil, especially if soil samples are affected by anthropogenic contamination. The concentrations of As, Cd, and Zn determined in soil extracts by both mineral and organic acids covered in most cases the element portion representing more than one soil element fraction determined using SM&T sequential extraction procedure. Solutions of acetic acid and DTPA were able to release a part of the element fraction bound in Fe/Mn oxides and organic matter of soil sample. Arsenic represents an exception because it is not released by DTPA

Effect of Addition of Ameliorative Materials on the Distribution of As, Cd, Pb, and Zn in Extractable Soil Fractions*

The effects of lime, limestone, and zeolite addition on the availability of As, Cd, Pb, and Zn in three contaminated soils were investigated in a pot experiment after four vegetation periods of spring wheat, spring barley, and oat. The results showed different responses of extractable element portions to soil amendment when 0.01 mol dm −3 aqueous CaCl2 was applied as a soil extraction agent. Substantial differences were evident among the investigated elements as well as among the individual soil treatments. Except natural zeolite, the ability of ameliorative materials to redistribute cadmium and zinc from a soil solution into less mobile but labile soil fractions was observed. The lead availability was less affected and the extractability of arsenic even increased in some of the treated pots. Moreover, the availability of arsenic was more affected by different characteristics of experimental soils than by individual soil treatments. It was found that these treatments can be applied neither for multicontaminated nor for all the soil types. The soil treatments had a lower effect on the less mobile soil fractions