Research Papers/Topics in Environmental Chemistry

Calibration of the SPEARpesticides bioindicator for cost-efective pesticide monitoring in East African streams

Abstract: Background: Pesticides are washed from agricultural felds into adjacent streams, where even short-term exposure causes long-term ecological damage. Detecting pesticide pollution in streams thus requires the expensive monitor ing of peak concentrations during run-of events. Alternatively, exposure and ecological efects can be assessed using the SPEARpesticides bioindicator that quantifes pesticide-related changes in the macroinvertebrate community compo sition. PEARpesticides has be...

REMEDIATION OF SOIL POLLUTION

Remediation is the process of addressing and resolving problems or issues to make a situation better. In essence, remediation is about taking steps to rectify or improve a situation by addressing its root causes or issues. It's a proactive process that aims to make things right or better than they were before a problem or challenge arose Soil remediation is the process of cleaning, restoring, or improving the quality of soil that has been contaminated or degraded by various pollutants. This ...

Ambient Air Quality and Noise Assessment in Eleme Communities, Rivers State, Nigeria

Problems caused by ambient air pollution on human and the environment can be averted by steadily and strictly monitoring of the concentrations of outdoor pollutants. Human activities have triggered changes in the earths atmosphere. In this research, 7(Seven) selected Eleme communities, 4(four) zones in each community and 28(Twenty eight) sampling points in all locations were assessed for the concentrations of CO, SO2 , NO2 , NO, CO2 , SPM, O2 , noise level and as well Meteorological param...

Optical Photocatalytic Degradation of Methylene Blue Using Lignocellulose Modified TiO2

This paper reports the photo-catalytic activity and stability of Lignocellulose/TiO2nanoparticles (NPs) was evaluated through using the decomposition of methylene blue (MB) as a testing model reaction under visible light irradiation (λmax> 420nm). The modified (NPs) (pH = 6.94 - 6.97) photocatalyst material was dried for 24 hours at the temperature of 80°C and calcinated at 400°C for 2 hours through constant air flow. The degradation of MB was performed using 250 Watt xenon lamp within...

Wastewater pretreatment methods for constructed wetland: Review

One of the most interesting research topics has been the constructed wetlands (CWs) for wastewater treatment. The primary operating issue of CWs is medium clogging, which is caused by the accumulation of varying sorts of solids, resulting in a reduction in the infiltration capacity of the gravel substrate. It is commonly recognized that effective wastewater pretreatment is necessary for the long-term operation of CW. Pre-treatment is crucial because it prepares the influent for CW treatment. ...

Compound Parabolic Concentrators for Solar Water Heat Pasteurization: Numerical Simulation

Many people in less developed countries drink water with microbial contamination, which leads to the annual death of 5 million children. Although some people currently boil water, all microbes that cause disease in humans do not survive at temperatures >65oC, which solar water pasteurizers can easily produce. These pasteurizers are similar to box solar cookers, and typically have a small rectangular reflector. The objective of this work is to calculate the increase in output due to compound p...

Viability of Small-Scale Arsenic-Contaminated Water Purification Technologies for Sustainable Development in Pakistan

Drinking arsenic-contaminated water leads to a series of health problems that has limited development for the largely poor rural people of Pakistan who are unable to afford bottled water, centralized treatment plants, or expensive water filter systems. This paper reviews the available appropriate technologies for the removal of arsenic in drinking water to assist in just sustainable development in Pakistan. Several technologies were found to be both technically- and economically- viable and s...

Environmental Impacts of Distributed Manufacturing from 3-D Printing of Polymer Components and Products

Although additive layer manufacturing is well established for rapid prototyping the low throughput and historic costs have prevented mass-scale adoption. The recent development of the RepRap, an open source self-replicating rapid prototyper, has made low-cost 3-D printers readily available to the public at reasonable prices (

Open-Source Photometric System for Enzymatic Nitrate Quantification

Nitrate, the most oxidized form of nitrogen, is regulated to protect people and animals from harmful levels as there is a large over abundance due to anthropogenic factors. Widespread field testing for nitrate could begin to address the nitrate pollution problem, however, the Cadmium Reduction Method, the leading certified method to detect and quantify nitrate, demands the use of a toxic heavy metal. An alternative, the recently proposed Environmental Protection Agency Nitrate Reductase Nitra...

Solar photovoltaic powered on-site ammonia production for nitrogen fertilization

Ammonia synthesis is the most important step for nitrogen-fertilizer production and consumes approximately 1% of the world’s energy production and energy-related greenhouse gas emissions. In addition to the concomitant emissions caused by ammonia and nitrogen fertilizer synthesis, centrally produced fertilizer that must be distributed to farms also harms the environment because of the embodied energy of transportation. An environmentally-optimal nitrogen fertilizer system would be distribut...

Energy Payback Time of a Solar Photovoltaic Powered Waste Plastic Recyclebot System

The growth of both plastic consumption and prosumer 3-D printing are driving an interest in producing 3-D printer filaments from waste plastic. This study quantifies the embodied energy of a vertical DC solar photovoltaic (PV) powered recyclebot based on life cycle energy analysis and compares it to horizontal AC recyclebots, conventional recycling, and the production of a virgin 3-D printer filament. The energy payback time (EPBT) is calculated using the embodied energy of the materials maki...

Excess lifetime Cancer risk and Radiation Pollution hazard indices in rocks and soil of some selected mining sites in Nasarawa State, Nigeria

Radiation exposures from mining and mineral processing  industries can lead to high incidence of disease conditions like  nausea, lung cancer, sterility, fatigue, and diarrhoea among mine workers. The concentration of primodial radionuclides (238U,  232Th and 40K) in some selected mining sites in Nasarawa State,  Nigeria, was examined in this study. Soil and rock samples from  eight different mining sites were collected and analyzed for  radionuclides activity concentration by gamma ray...