Nanoscale Metallic Iron for Environmental Remediation: Prospects and Limitations

The amendment of the subsurface with nanoscale metallic iron particles (nano-Fe0) has been discussed in the literature as an efficient in situ technology for groundwater remediation. However, the introduction of this technology was controversial and its efficiency has never been univocally established. This unsatisfying situation has motivated this communication whose objective was a comprehensive discussion of the intrinsic reactivity of nano-Fe0 based on the contemporary knowledge on the mechanism of contaminant removal by Fe0 and a mathematical model. It is showed that due to limitations of the mass transfer of nano-Fe0 to contaminants, available concepts cannot explain the success of nano-Fe0 injection for in situ groundwater remediation. It is recommended to test the possibility of introducing nano-Fe0 to initiate the formation of roll-fronts which propagation would induce the reductive transformation of both dissolved and adsorbed contaminants. Within a roll-front, FeII from nano-Fe0 is the reducing agent for contaminants. FeII is recycled by biotic or abiotic FeIII reduction. While the roll-front concept could explain the success of already implemented reaction zones, more research is needed for a science-based recommendation of nano- Fe0 for subsurface treatment by roll-front

Alcohol consumption and sport: a cross-sectional study of alcohol management practices associated with at-risk alcohol consumption at community football clubs

BackgroundExcessive alcohol consumption is responsible for considerable harm from chronic disease and injury. Within most developed countries, members of sporting clubs participate in at-risk alcohol consumption at levels above that of communities generally. There has been limited research investigating the predictors of at-risk alcohol consumption in sporting settings, particularly at the non-elite level. The purpose of this study was to examine the association between the alcohol management practices and characteristics of community football clubs and at-risk alcohol consumption by club members.MethodsA cross sectional survey of community football club management representatives and members was conducted. Logistic regression analysis (adjusting for clustering by club) was used to determine the association between the alcohol management practices (including alcohol management policy, alcohol-related sponsorship, availability of low- and non-alcoholic drinks, and alcohol-related promotions, awards and prizes) and characteristics (football code, size and location) of sporting clubs and at-risk alcohol consumption by club members.ResultsMembers of clubs that served alcohol to intoxicated people [OR: 2.23 (95% CI: 1.26-3.93)], conducted &lsquo;happy hour&rsquo; promotions [OR: 2.84 (95% CI: 1.84-4.38)] or provided alcohol-only awards and prizes [OR: 1.80 (95% CI: 1.16-2.80)] were at significantly greater odds of consuming alcohol at risky levels than members of clubs that did not have such alcohol management practices. At-risk alcohol consumption was also more likely among members of clubs with less than 150 players compared with larger clubs [OR:1.45 (95% CI: 1.02-2.05)] and amongst members of particular football codes.ConclusionsThe findings of this study suggest a need and opportunity for the implementation of alcohol harm reduction strategies targeting specific alcohol management practices at community football clubs.<br /

The effectiveness of an intervention in increasing community health clinician provision of preventive care: a study protocol of a non-randomised, multiple-baseline trial

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The primary behavioural risks for the most common causes of mortality and morbidity in developed countries are tobacco smoking, poor nutrition, risky alcohol use, and physical inactivity. Evidence, guidelines and policies support routine clinician delivery of care to prevent these risks within primary care settings. Despite the potential afforded by community health services for the delivery of such preventive care, the limited evidence available suggests it is provided at suboptimal levels. This study aims to assess the effectiveness of a multi-strategic practice change intervention in increasing clinician's routine provision of preventive care across a network of community health services.</p> <p>Methods/Design</p> <p>A multiple baseline study will be conducted involving all 56 community health facilities in a single health district in New South Wales, Australia. The facilities will be allocated to one of three administratively-defined groups. A 12 month practice change intervention will be implemented in all facilities in each group to facilitate clinician risk assessment of eligible clients, and clinician provision of brief advice and referral to those identified as being 'at risk'. The intervention will be implemented in a non-random sequence across the three facility groups. Repeated, cross-sectional measurement of clinician provision of preventive care for four individual risks (smoking, poor nutrition, risky alcohol use, and physical inactivity) will occur continuously for all three facility groups for 54 months via telephone interviews. The interviews will be conducted with randomly selected clients who have visited a community health facility in the last two weeks. Data collection will commence 12 months prior to the implementation of the intervention in the first group, and continue for six months following the completion of the intervention in the last group. As a secondary source of data, telephone interviews will be undertaken prior to and following the intervention with randomly selected samples of clinicians from each facility group to assess the reported provision of preventive care, and the acceptability of the practice change intervention and implementation.</p> <p>Discussion</p> <p>The study will provide novel evidence regarding the ability to increase clinician's routine provision of preventive care across a network of community health facilities.</p> <p>Trial registration</p> <p>Australian Clinical Trials Registry <a href="http://www.anzctr.org.au/ACTRN12611001284954.aspx">ACTRN12611001284954</a></p> <p>Universal Trial Number (UTN)</p> <p>U1111-1126-3465</p

Abiotic ammonium formation in the presence of Ni-Fe metals and alloys and its implications for the Hadean nitrogen cycle

Experiments with dinitrogen-, nitrite-, nitrate-containing solutions were conducted without headspace in Ti reactors (200°C), borosilicate septum bottles (70°C) and HDPE tubes (22°C) in the presence of Fe and Ni metal, awaruite (Ni80Fe20) and tetrataenite (Ni50Fe50). In general, metals used in this investigation were more reactive than alloys toward all investigated nitrogen species. Nitrite and nitrate were converted to ammonium more rapidly than dinitrogen, and the reduction process had a strong temperature dependence. We concluded from our experimental observations that Hadean submarine hydrothermal systems could have supplied significant quantities of ammonium for reactions that are generally associated with prebiotic synthesis, especially in localized environments. Several natural meteorites (octahedrites) were found to contain up to 22 ppm Ntot. While the oxidation state of N in the octahedrites was not determined, XPS analysis of metals and alloys used in the study shows that N is likely present as nitride (N3-). This observation may have implications toward the Hadean environment, since, terrestrial (e.g., oceanic) ammonium production may have been supplemented by reduced nitrogen delivered by metal-rich meteorites. This notion is based on the fact that nitrogen dissolves into metallic melts

'Am I not answering your questions properly?' : Clarification, adequacy and responsiveness in semi-structured telephone and face-to-face interviews

This article considers spoken interaction in semi-structured qualitative research interviews, comparing those that are conducted by telephone or face-to-face. It draws upon recent empirical research that illuminated some of the differences that may be observed between these two interview modes. Methodological techniques drawn from Conversation Analysis were used to conduct a systematic and transparent comparison of the interview interactions, focusing on the spoken interactional devices that researcher and interviewee employ in order to pursue and maintain a collaborative and comprehensible dialogue. The article begins with an overview of previous discussion on the interactional effects of the telephone in qualitative interviews. Here, we find that while instructional texts have traditionally advised that the telephone mode is not well-suited to the task of qualitative interviewing - primarily because the lack of face-to-face contact is said to restrict the development of rapport and a 'natural' encounter - researchers giving personal accounts of conducting telephone interviews tend to offer more nuanced or critical reflections on the extent to which the lack of visual cues affects the interaction in practice. Empirical findings are then presented on: formulation and completion, clarification and comprehension, acknowledgement, interviewees' checks on the 'adequacy' of their talk, and the duration of interviews. Key findings were that: completion or formulation of interviewee talk by the researcher was more common in face-to-face interviews, interviewee requests for clarification were slightly more common in telephone interviews, vocalized acknowledgements given by the researcher were less frequent in telephone interviews, interviewee checks on the adequacy of their responses were more common in telephone interviews, and telephone interviews tended to be shorter than those conducted face-to-face. The article discusses possible explanations for the findings that emerge alongside consideration of some potential implications