Wisdom from the Late Bronze Age, by Y. Cohen [author]

This volume presents the original texts and annotated translations of a collection of Mesopotamian wisdom compositions and related texts of the Late Bronze Age (ca. 1500–1200 B.C.E.) found at the ancient Near Eastern sites of Hattuša, Emar, and Ugarit. These wisdom compositions constitute the missing link between the great Sumerian wisdom corpus and early Akkadian wisdom literature of the Old Babylonian period, on the one hand, and the wisdom compositions of the first millennium B.C.E., on the other. Included here are works such as the Ballad of Early Rulers, Hear the Advice, and The Date-Palm and the Tamarisk, as well as proverb collections from Ugarit and Hattuša. A detailed introduction provides an assessment of the place of wisdom literature in the ancient curriculum and library collections

Needs and challenges for assessing the environmental impacts of engineered nanomaterials (ENMs).

The potential environmental impact of nanomaterials is a critical concern and the ability to assess these potential impacts is top priority for the progress of sustainable nanotechnology. Risk assessment tools are needed to enable decision makers to rapidly assess the potential risks that may be imposed by engineered nanomaterials (ENMs), particularly when confronted by the reality of limited hazard or exposure data. In this review, we examine a range of available risk assessment frameworks considering the contexts in which different stakeholders may need to assess the potential environmental impacts of ENMs. Assessment frameworks and tools that are suitable for the different decision analysis scenarios are then identified. In addition, we identify the gaps that currently exist between the needs of decision makers, for a range of decision scenarios, and the abilities of present frameworks and tools to meet those needs

Surface characterization data for tethered polyacrylic acid layers synthesized on polysulfone surfaces.

The data presented are supplementary to an article [Kim et al., 2019] on synthesis and surface characterization of tethered polyacrylic acid (PAA) layers on polysulfone (PSf) film/membrane surfaces via atmospheric pressure plasma-induced graft polymerization (APPIGP). Data on surface characterization of the synthesized tethered PAA layers includes: AFM topographic surface images and height distributions of surface features, dry layer thickness, chain rupture length distributions determined via AFM based force spectroscopy (AFM-FS), in addition to measurements of water contact angles. Fouling propensity data for ultrafiltration of alginic acid as a model foulant are also provided for native and PAA grafted PSf ultrafiltration (UF) membranes

Eulerian Statistically Preserved Structures in Passive Scalar Advection

We analyze numerically the time-dependent linear operators that govern the dynamics of Eulerian correlation functions of a decaying passive scalar advected by a stationary, forced 2-dimensional Navier-Stokes turbulence. We show how to naturally discuss the dynamics in terms of effective compact operators that display Eulerian Statistically Preserved Structures which determine the anomalous scaling of the correlation functions. In passing we point out a bonus of the present approach, in providing analytic predictions for the time-dependent correlation functions in decaying turbulent transport.Comment: 10 pages, 10 figures. Submitted to Phys. Rev.

Novel Ceramic-Polymer Composite Membranes for the Separation of Liquid Waste

There is a growing need in the areas of hazardous waste treatment, remediation and pollution prevention for new processes capable of selectively separating and removing target organic species from aqueous steams. Membrane separation processes are especially suited for solute removal from dilute solutions. They have the additional advantage of requiring less energy relative to conventional separation technologies (e.g., distillation, extraction and even adsorption processes). The major difficulty with current membranes is the poor longevity of polymeric membranes under harsh conditions (high temperature, harsh solvents and pH conditions) and the lack of selectivity of ceramic membranes. In our previous work (1996 EMSP project), a first generation of novel polymer-ceramic (PolyCer) composite membranes were developed with the goal of overcoming the above difficulties. The proposed PolyCer membranes are fabricated by a surface-graft polymerization process resulting in a molecular layer of polymer chains which are terminally and covalently anchored to the porous membrane support. The polymer imparts the desired membrane selectivity while the ceramic support provides structural integrity. The PolyCer membrane retain its structural integrity and performance even when the polymer phase is exposed to harsh solvent conditions since the polymer chains are covalently bonded to the ceramic support surface. To date, prototype PolyCer membranes were developed for two different membrane separation processes: (a) pervaporation removal of organics from aqueous systems; and (b) ultrafiltration of oil-in-water emulsions. Pervaporation PolyCer membranes were demonstrated for removal of selected organics (TCE, chloroform and MTBE) from water with permeate enrichment factors as high as 300. While the above results have been extremely encouraging, higher enrichment factors (>1000) should be sought for field applications. The above improvement is feasible by increasing the length and surface density of the grafted polymer chains. The required simultaneous increase in surface polymer graft density and chain length is beyond the capability of present free-radical graft polymerization methods. Therefore, it is proposed to develop a new approach to synthesizing the grafted polymer membrane phase via ''living'' free-radical polymerization. This approach should allow controlled growth of the grafted polymer chains while maintaining the advantage of high surface chain density possible with conventional free-radical polymerization. Optimization of the membrane surface layer will be sought by developing fundamental correlation between surface characteristics (e.g., topology, chain length and surface density) and membrane performance. The ability to tailor-design the grafted polymer surface with long polymer chains of a desired surface density is also advantageous in fabricating non-fouling ultrafiltration membranes for colloidal filtration. Using th e same ''living'' free-radical polymerization technology, as for the pervaporation membranes, ultrafiltration ceramic membranes with terminally anchored surface chains, can be produced to repel colloidal species, thus reducing membrane fouling while increasing permeate rejection. As an outcome of the 1996 EEMSP project, it was discovered that, with sufficiently long surface chains, significant increase in PolyCer UF membrane rejection is possible, especially at high tangential velocities. The fabrication, via ''living'' free-radical polymerization, and optimization of such non-fouling UF membranes is another goal of the proposed research. It is expected that this project will results in the demonstration of a commercially viable technology for the ''tailor design'' and optimization of a new class of selective and robust polymer-ceramic (PolyCer) membranes for aqueous waste treatment and water decontamination applications. The proposed PolyCer approach will allow the rapid deployment of ''field-ready'' and task-specific membranes for recovery and recycle for remediation and pollution prevention applications

Diagnostic analysis of RO desalting treated waste water

Diagnostic analysis of reverse osmosis membranes that were fed with Western treatment plant (WTP) recycled water was investigated by both thermodynamic calculations and laboratory experiments in order to predict the feasibility of RO desalting for WTP. The thermodynamic calculations suggested that RO recoveries of 80–85% were feasible with careful control of feed water pH and the use of chemical additives such as antiscalants and chelating agents, it also predicted the major minerals of concern to be silica, calcium fluoride, calcium carbonate, and calcium phosphate. Following the thermodynamic simulations, diagnostic laboratory experiments were undertaken. The experiments showed that the major contributor to scale formation was indeed calcium phosphate and possibly another calcium based compound, which was strongly suspected to be calcium carbonate. Based on previously published literature that indicated anti-scalants did not substantially decrease the scaling effect of calcium phosphate and laboratory tests that indicated controlling the pH to 6.4 in the feed water dramatically reduced scaling formation, it was suggested that the feed water could be controlled by pH adjustments only. Inter-stage pH correction was suggested as an optional technique to enhance the overall water recovery to above 95%