Remoção de aluminio monomérico de água para abastecimento através da ação da carboximetilcelulose e da quitina

Dissertação (mestrado) - Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina, Centro Tecnológico, Programa de Pós-graduação em Engenharia AmbientalExistem cada vez mais evidências de que o alumínio é prejudicial para a saúde. Seu excesso no organismo prejudica o transporte de ferro e as funções do ATP, além de provocar osteomalacia, encefalopatia por diálise e anemia microcítica. Suspeita-se também que possa ser um fator desencadeante da doença de Alzheimer e da esclerose múltipla. Uma das fontes mais importantes de entrada de alumínio no organismo humano é a água potável. A tecnologia empregada para remover o alumínio foi a remoção via uso de biopolímeros, por serem materiais abundantes e biodisponíveis, renováveis, de custo relativamente baixo e não tóxicos. Os biopolímeros escolhidos em base à literatura foram a carboximetilcelulose e a quitina. Estes biomateriais podem remover alumínio via processos de adsorção e/ou de complexação via formação de ligações entre seus grupos funcionais e o alumínio. O presente trabalho objetivou: a) determinar a capacidade de remoção de Al3+ por ambos os biopolímeros na faixa de concentração do metal encontrada em água de abastecimento público; b) caracterizar o mecanismo e a velocidade do processo de remoção de Al3+ pelos biopolímeros por meio de estudos isotérmicos, espectroscópicos e cinéticos; c) efetuar estudos de remoção de alumínio em fluxo contínuo visando encontrar os melhores parâmetros operacionais. Os ensaios de remoção de alumínio foram efetuados em regime de batelada utilizando soluções aquosas sintéticas contendo diferentes concentrações de alumínio e diferentes quantidades de biopolímeros. Foram efetuados diferentes experimentos para determinar as condições ideais de pH, temperatura, relação quantidade de biopolímero/concentração de alumínio e tempo de contacto água/biopolímero que levam às melhores remoções de alumínio. Os resultados permitiram concluir que a carboximetilcelulose não é um agente de remoção de alumínio adequado quando este se encontra presentes em baixas concentrações características de águas para abastecimento. Em contraste, a quitina demonstrou uma capacidade de remoção excelente, mesmo a temperatura ambiente e sem necessidade de modificar o pH da amostra. Com objeto de caracterizar o mecanismo que rege a remoção de alumínio pelos biopolímeros, foram efetuados estudos de isotermas de adsorção utilizando soluções sintéticas. Os dados experimentais dos ensaios foram comparados com os modelos de isoterma de Langmuir, Freundlich, Sips e Tóth. O modelo que melhor ajustou-se foi o de Tóth, o que indica um mecanismo de remoção via quimissorção, mas com interações Al-biopolímero mais fracas que as correspondentes ao modelo de Langmuir. A capacidade máxima de remoção de alumínio calculada foi de 20,144 mg Al3+ / g quitina, valor muito adequado para o emprego de quitina em procedimentos em maior escala. Análises por espectroscopia infravermelha (IFTR) e microscopia eletrônica de varredura (MEV) contribuíram para uma melhor caracterização do material, antes e após o processo de remoção, bem como do mecanismo envolvido no processo. Os estudos cinéticos, efetuados com soluções sintéticas, água de poço e água decantada de estação de tratamento de água, revelaram cinéticas de pseudo-segunda ordem, atingindo-se os residuais de alumínio permitidos pela normativa em ~30 minutos para o biopolímero quitina. Para a remoção total de alumínio foram necessários tempos de contacto de ~160 minutos, dependendo da relação Al3+/biopolímero usada. Os ensaios em fluxo contínuo e descendente de água de poço através de uma coluna contendo quitina compactada mostraram-se muito promissores. A técnica mostrou-se capaz de remover alumínio de grandes volumes de água com tempos curtos de contacto sem atingir a saturação do biopolímero, demonstrando uma capacidade de remoção máxima de 9,53 mg Al3+/ g quitina, sendo capaz de manter a água abaixo do valor máximo permitido nas condições analisadas por mais de 2 horas com uma taxa de 6,7 m3 m-2 h-1. O estudo efetuado demonstrou que a quitina é um biomaterial muito adequado para a remoção de alumínio de água para abastecimento, tanto em regime de batelada como em contínuo. Estes resultados, junto com seu baixo custo, que faz desnecessário aplicar processos para sua regeneração após saturação, permitem concluir que a quitina é um excelente agente de remoção de alumínio a escala de laboratório que pode ser testado em experimentos em maior escalaThere is increasing evidence that aluminum may be harmful to human health. Its excess impairs the body iron transport and functions of ATP, besides causing osteomalacia, dialysis encephalopathy and microcytic anemia. It is suspected that can also be a trigger factor of Alzheimer's disease and multiple sclerosis. One of the most important sources of aluminum intake and ingestion in the human body is drinking water. Therefore, this study aimed to remove the aluminum present in water supplies, from both natural and introduced from coagulants used in water treatment stations. The technology employed to remove the aluminum was via use of biopolymers, to be bioavailable, abundant, renewable, relatively inexpensive non-toxic materials. The polymers chosen were based on literature were carboxymethylcellulose and chitin. Those biomaterials can remove aluminum via adsorption processes and/or complexing via the formation of bonds between their functional groups and aluminum. This study aimed to: a) determine the removal capacity of Al3+ for both polymers in the concentration range of metal found in public water supply, b) to characterize the mechanism and speed the process of Al3+ removal by the biopolymers through isothermal, kinetic and spectroscopic studies; c) conduct aluminum removal studies in continuous flow in order to find the best operating parameters. The aluminum removal tests were made under batch conditions, using synthetic aqueous solutions containing different concentrations of Al3+ and different amounts of biopolymers. Several experiments were performed to determine the optimal conditions of pH, temperature, relative amount of biopolymer/aluminum concentration and contact time water/biopolymer that lead to a better Al3+ removal. The results showed that carboxymethylcellulose is not an suitable agent for Al3+ removal when it is present in low concentrations of features for water supply. In contrast, a chitin demonstrated excellent ability to remove Al3+, even at room temperature and without need to modify the pH of the sample. Aiming characterizing the mechanism governing the removal of aluminum by biopolymers, adsorption isotherms studies using synthetic solutions were carried out. The experimental tests were compared with the Langmuir, Freundlich, Sips and Toth isothermal models. The model that best fitted the experimental data was Tóth model, which indicates a removal mechanism through chemisorption, but with a Al-biopolymer interaction weaker than those corresponding to the Langmuir model. The maximum aluminum removal was estimated to be 20.144 mg Al3+/g chitin, a very suitable value for the use of chitin in procedures on a larger scale. Analysis by infrared spectroscopy (IFTR) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) contributed to a better characterization of the material before and after the removal process as well as the mechanism involved. The kinetic studies performed with synthetic solutions, well water and decanted Water Treatment Plant water, showed kinetics of pseudo-second order, reaching the residual aluminum allowed by WHO guide in ~ 30 minutes for the biopolymer chitin, with a complete Al3+ removal from the solution within a contact time of ~ 160 minutes, depending on the relationship Al3+/QTN used. The tests and down-stream flux of well water through a packed column containing QTN were very promising. The QTN was capable of removing aluminum from large volumes of water with short times of contact without reaching the saturation of the biopolymer, showing a maximum adsorption capacity of 9.53 mg Al3+/g chitin, being capable of maintaining the water below the maximum permitted concentration for over two hours at a rate of 6,7 m3 m2 h-1. The studies performed demonstrated that chitin is a biomaterial very suitable for the removal of water for aluminum, both under batch and continuous. These results, along with its low cost, which makes it unnecessary to apply processes for regeneration after saturation, allow to conclude that the chitin is an excellent agent for removing aluminum laboratory scale that can be tested in experiments on a larger scal

Environmental impacts of a digital health and well-being service in elderly living schemes

Over the past decade, digitalization and digital technologies (DTs) have undergone rapid evolution, transforming how goods and services are produced and consumed in modern societies. Health and well-being sectors have embraced this digital revolution. Besides the economic and social benefits, digitalization can significantly enhance patient diagnostics and prognostics while improving overall service efficiency. To ensure long-term sustainability, it is important to assess and reduce the environmental impacts of digital services. This article examines the life cycle impacts of a digital service implemented in three elderly living schemes (ELSs) located in the United Kingdom (UK). The digital service consists of six electronic devices (EDs) that enable communication between residents, visitors, staff, and offsite monitoring (OM). The equipment is connected using Power over Ethernet (PoE) technology, which includes smart network switch and uninterruptable power supply units. The digital service's global warming potential (GWP) was estimated at 718–741 kg CO2 eq./resident for two of the ELSs and 1509 kg CO2 eq./resident for a third ELS, considering a service period of 20 years. The reason for the significant difference is the greater use of air conditioner (A/C) units to cool down server rooms and fewer residents in the third scheme. The consumption of electricity was found to be the main contributor to most of the environmental impacts. However, in certain categories such as mineral resource scarcity, freshwater eutrophication, and freshwater and marine ecotoxicity potentials, printed circuit boards (PCBs) were the main contributors. A sensitivity analysis considering different national electricity mixes demonstrated that the French electricity grid promoted the reduction in 14 impact categories, whereas the German, Italian, Spanish and Japanese grids increased on average impacts on most categories. Another sensitivity analysis demonstrates that reducing A/C unit running time by 28% resulted in an average impact reduction of 5.5%, becoming equivalent to the results obtained for the French electricity grid. Finally, extending the expected lifespan of electronic equipment by 20% yielded the highest average decrease in environmental impacts (8.1%). While digitalization has the potential to enhance patient healthcare and reduce costs, it is crucial to carefully assess its environmental impacts and implement mitigation strategies to ensure sustainable development in the healthcare sector.<br/

Comparative life cycle assessment of seawater desalination technologies enhanced by graphene membranes

Graphene oxide (GO)-enhanced membranes are being developed to solve major limitations in both reverse osmosis (RO) and membrane distillation (MD) technologies, which include high electricity and thermal energy consumption. This study performed, for the first time, a life cycle assessment to determine the effects of using GO-enhanced membranes on the environmental impacts of seawater desalination via RO and MD. Four scenarios were evaluated and eighteen environmental impacts were quantified according to the ReCiPe impact assessment method. The average impacts for the RO-GO scenarios were lower than those of RO by 3–7 %. The reduction in the climate change impact was 3–8 %, which could avoid the release of 380–850 kt CO2 eq. per year globally if these membranes were used in current seawater RO systems. The MD-GO scenarios had, on average, 27–34 % lower impacts than the MD scenarios. Overall, the RO-GO systems were the most favourable, with lower impacts than MD-GO for most categories. However, using solar-thermal energy instead of natural gas in MD desalination would lead to 43–93 % lower impacts in nine categories than RO powered predominantly by fossil fuels. This includes climate change, which would be 64 % lower; however, freshwater ecotoxicity would be more than four-times higher. The results of this work indicate the potential environmental benefits of GO-enhanced membranes and discuss the future developments needed to improve the performance of RO and MD