The effects of gypsum and açai as amendments on bauxite residue as a growth medium: chemical properties, mobility of toxic trace elements and vegetation experiment

As the third most common element in the earth's crust, aluminum possesses functional qualities for a variety of industrial and household applications. The extraction of primary aluminum from bauxite ore accelerated in response to higher demand, resulting in significant increase in bauxite residue. This by-product has unique features resulting from the diverse ore compositions and additives employed in the Bayer manufacturing process. With features such as high pH, high salt content, and the presence of toxic trace elements, the environment is significantly challenged by discharges in addition to rehabilitation and exploitation of disposal areas. In this thesis, the effect of adding gypsum and açai both individually and in combination to improve the bauxite residue into a functioning growth medium is investigated. Bauxite residue that has been treated in the field is examined for changes in pH, electrical conductivity, organic carbon content, as well as toxic trace elements (arsenic, vanadium, and aluminum) in the porewater before, during, and after vegetation experiment with ryegrass (Lolium perenne). Simultaneously, the uptake of toxic trace elements in the vegetation is analyzed. The results were calculated using the mean values of triplicates for each amendment. The addition of 10% açai alone lowered the pH from ~10 to ~9, whereas the addition of gypsum alone or in combination with açai significantly lowered the pH to ~7-8, which provided a favorable environment for plant growth. The amendment with 10% açai + 10% gypsum showed the best growth measured in height. The results also showed that a combination of gypsum and açai together led to better growth than either component alone. Trace element concentrations in porewater were dominated by pH, indicating degrees of leaching from solid phase to solution. Trace elements in porewater samples with higher pH in oxidizing conditions were present in anionic form and exhibited higher concentrations. The best-growing samples did not demonstrate a higher uptake of trace elements, but they were likely bound to the DOC present in the solution. Comparisons between the amendments revealed that açai alone was insufficient to enhance the bauxite residue conditions. The lack of plant-available nutrients and organic carbon in gypsum-only amendments also inhibited plant development, but proved that gypsum is an effective approach for forming a pH-appropriate basis. Amendments with gypsum and 10% açai required no more than 10% gypsum since the system presumably reached saturation and did not increase cation exchange between Ca and Na. For future studies, it may be advantageous to experiment with additive concentrations to obtain optimal plant development and perform geochemical modeling to determine metal speciation and mobility to substantiate the findings. In addition, a larger-scale experiment with seeding in the field and an evaluation of microbiological activity may be valuable to assess the long-term effect

THE RUINS OF EMPIRE: British Responses to Ruins in Colonial India

The different and changing meanings of the ruined form in the European consciousness point to its position as a discursive space, expressed in ideas of a ‘ruin motif’. However, most historical investigations into ruins have been concerned with classical structures in the European context. This thesis examines the operations of the ruin motif in the setting of nineteenth century-century colonial India through a study of John Benjamin Seely’s travel text The Wonders of Elora (1824) and James Fergusson’s The History of Architecture in All Countries (1874). It argues that the ruin motif was an important means by which the aims, difficulties and tensions in colonial discourses were articulated

INCREASING PURCHASE INTENTION AND WORD-OF-MOUTH THROUGH HOTEL BRAND AWARENESS

Purpose – Mobile applications (apps) have been widely used in many industries as a method for companies to communicate with customers. The hotel industry is one of the top sectors that utilizes mobile apps. The majority of luxury hotels are updating themselves being a part of this new wave. The aim of this study was to investigate the impact of hotel brand awareness from hotel-branded mobile application towards WOM and purchase intention by the travelers based on the theory of consumption values. Design – A survey was administrated to 453 foreign travelers in Bangkok who used hotel-branded mobile apps in order to evaluate the accuracy and effectiveness of the conceptual model. Methodology – Structural equation modeling (SEM) was used for model estimation. Findings – The results revealed that hotel brand awareness acted as a mediator in the relationship between the attributes of mobile applications and travellers\u27 consumer behaviour such as purchase intention and word of mouth. In order to raise brand awareness in mobile apps, it is essential to create value through the mobile apps, have proficient virtual interactivity, and reasonable rewards. Originality of the research – Only limited amount of the previous research is available attempting to identify insights into how the value proposition attributes of mobile apps could be better designed to deliver enhanced brand awareness

Global fossil fuel reduction pathways under different climate mitigation strategies and ambitions

The mitigation scenarios database of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change's Sixth Assessment Report is an important resource for informing policymaking on energy transitions. However, there is a large variety of models, scenario designs, and resulting outputs. Here we analyse the scenarios consistent with limiting warming to 2 °C or below regarding the speed, trajectory, and feasibility of different fossil fuel reduction pathways. In scenarios limiting warming to 1.5 °C with no or limited overshoot, global coal, oil, and natural gas supply (intended for all uses) decline on average by 95%, 62%, and 42%, respectively, from 2020 to 2050, but the long-term role of gas is highly variable. Higher-gas pathways are enabled by higher carbon capture and storage (CCS) and carbon dioxide removal (CDR), but are likely associated with inadequate model representation of regional CO2 storage capacity and technology adoption, diffusion, and path-dependencies. If CDR is constrained by limits derived from expert consensus, the respective modelled coal, oil, and gas reductions become 99%, 70%, and 84%. Our findings suggest the need to adopt unambiguous near- and long-term reduction benchmarks in coal, oil, and gas production and use alongside other climate mitigation targets

Decrease in antibiotic resistance of Streptococcus pneumoniae between 2003 and 2009 in France and changes in serotype distribution: Ongoing survey of the French Pneumococcus Surveillance Network

Background: The French regional pneumococcal observatories (ORP) network was created in 1995, it participates to the close monitoring of the trends in antimicrobial resistance and serotype distribution with the National Reference Centre for Pneumococci (NRCP) and the Institut de Veille Sanitaire (InVS). The aim of this survey was to assess the antibiotic resistance and the distribution of vaccine and non-vaccine serotypes in invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD) in adults and children as well in otitis in children in France in 2009. Methods: Antimicrobial susceptibility testing was performed on 5,194 isolates of S. pneumoniae recovered from cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), blood, middle ear fluid (MEF) and pleural fluid during the year 2009 by the 23 ORP. MICs of penicillin (P), amoxicillin (AMX) and cefotaxime (CTX) were determined by the agar dilution method and interpreted according to the Antibiotics Comity of the French Society of Microbiology breakpoints. Serotyping was performed at the NRCP with serotype-specific antisera, by latex agglutination test. Results: Results of susceptibility between 2003 and 2009 to P are presented in Table 1. The pneumococci with decreased susceptibility to penicillin G (PDSP) decreased significantly in all types of samples except for MEF’s isolates in children between 2007 and 2009. In the global population, the percentage of I+R (2003 vs 2009) decreased significantly for AMX (30.3% versus 9.6%) and for CTX (18.2% versus 10.5%). Strains highly resistant (MIC > 2 mg/L) remained rare: 0.4%, 1.1% and 0.2% for P, AMX and CTX respectively. The most frequent capsular types in CSF were 3, 7F, 19A, 6C, 23B for adults and 7F, 19A, 3, 33F and 15B for children. Serotypes included in the PCV-7 and PCV-13 vaccine accounted in children for 4% and 51% respectively and in adults for 12% and 48% respectively. By contrast, the serotype 19A remained highly predominant (80%) among MEF isolates. Conclusions: We observed a significant decrease of PDSP between 2003 and 2009 (50.2 to 33.0%). The decrease coincided with the introduction of PCV7 and with a general reduction in levels of antibiotic consumption in France. This continuous survey is necessary to underline modification in serotype distribution in France after PVC13 introduction (June 2010)

Role of superantigenic strains in the prognosis of community-acquired methicillin-susceptible Staphylococcus aureus bacteraemia

ABSTRACTMethicillin-susceptible Staphylococcus aureus (MSSA) strains can produce superantigenic toxins that may trigger a massive release of pro-inflammatory cytokines, which are involved in the onset of septic shock. This 1-year prospective pilot study assessed the role of the production of superantigenic toxins in the outcome of immunocompetent patients hospitalised for community-acquired MSSA bacteraemia. Thirty-seven patients were enrolled, of whom 14 died in hospital. Fourteen patients had septic shock, and the mortality rate in this subgroup was 56%. Twenty-seven (73%) isolates produced at least one superantigenic toxin, but this did not influence the rate of occurrence of septic shock or death

Incidence of Newly Diagnosed Tuberculosis among Healthcare Workers in a Teaching Hospital, Thailand

Background: Data on the incidence of new onset tuberculosis (TB) infection among healthcare workers (HCWs) in Thailand was scarce and not current. Objectives: To determine the incidence of TB, as well as the impact of TB on HCWs in a teaching hospital in Bangkok, Thailand. Methods: A time series cross-sectional study was conducted at Ramathibodi Hospital, Bangkok, Thailand. It was a teaching hospital with 9,562 employees. Medical records of personnel with TB infection between October 1st, 2010 and September 30th, 2015 were reviewed to determine the newly diagnosed TB infection. The personnel who were treated in fiscal year 2015 were interviewed about work-related issues, health status and the impact of TB. Findings: In five years, 109 personnel were diagnosed with new onset TB disease. The infection rates were 2.04, 1.97, 2.85, 2.53, and 1.35 per 1,000 persons in 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, and 2015, respectively. The most prevalent type of TB infection was pulmonary TB. The infection rate in males was higher than in females. Pharmacists had the highest proportion of infected personnel. The second highest rate of infection was in support staff related to patient care. Twenty personnel were interviewed. Most of them worked in patient care units with central-type air-conditioning system without negative-pressure rooms for TB patients. Contracting TB had an impact on productivity at work, health (physically, mentally and socially) and incomes. Conclusions: Ramathibodi HCWs had higher rate of TB infection than the general Thai population, but the incidence was noted to be decreasing from 2013 to 2015. HCWs suffered from the impact of TB on their lives in multiple ways. Due to the adverse impact of TB on the health and welfare of its employees, hospital administration should apply effective preventive measures and develop a compensation system for HCWs infected with TB