Economic growth,energy consumption,and environmental quality nexus in Turkey: Evidence from simultaneous equation models

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - The present research article uses simultaneous equation modelling approach to investigate the three-way linkages between economic growth, energy...     

A comprehensive review on green buildings research: bibliometric analysis during 1998–2018

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Buildings account for nearly 2/5ths of global energy expenditure. Due to this figure, the 90s witnessed the rise of green buildings (GBs) that were...     

Preparation of Viscose Fibres Stripped of Reactive Dyes and Wrinkle-Free Crosslinked Cotton Textile Finish

The chemical recycling of cellulosic fibres may represent a next-generation fibre–fibre recycling system for cotton textiles, though remaining challenges include how to accommodate fibre blends, dyes, wrinkle-free finishes, and other impurities from finishing. These challenges may disrupt the regeneration process steps and reduce the fibre quality. This study examines the impact on regenerated viscose fibre properties of a novel alkaline/acid bleaching sequence to strip reactive dyes and dimethyloldihydroxyethyleneureas (DMDHEU) wrinkle-free finish from cotton textiles. Potentially, such a bleaching sequence could advantageously be integrated into the viscose process, reducing the costs and environmental impact of the product. The study investigates the spinning performance and mechanical properties (e.g., tenacity and elongation) of the regenerated viscose fibres. The alkaline/acid bleaching sequence was found to strip the reactive dye and DMDHEU wrinkle-free finish from the cotton fabric, so the resulting pulp could successfully be spun into viscose fibres, though the mechanical properties of these fibres were worse than those of commercial viscose fibres. This study finds that reactive dyes and DMDHEU wrinkle-free finish affect the viscose dope quality and the regeneration performance. The results might lead to progress in overcoming quality challenges in cellulosic chemical recycling.     

Improved desalination by polyamide membranes containing hydrophilic glutamine and glycine

Environmental Chemistry Letters - Water desalination and recycling of wastewater is a key challenge to meet water shortage issues. Thin film composite polyamide membranes are widely used for...     

Pesticide burden on some insects of economic importance in Lucknow (India)

Some insects of economic importance from Lucknow (India) have been investigated for their pesticide burden. Chlorinated pesticide residues of DDT, BHC and aldrin along with their metabolites and isomers have been detected in crop pollinating insects, honeybees (Apis indica) and butterflies (Danais chrysippus and Eurema sp.) and predators, dragonfly (Platythemis sp.) and wasps (Polistes herebreus). DDT and their metabolites were present in concentrations which varied from 231–796 ng g^–1, followed by BHC (10–60 ng g^–1), and aldrin (0.26–6.68 ng g^–1). This finding is likely to stimulate newer interest in the area of pesticide research and start meaningful investigation to find if bioaccumulated pesticides would have adverse impact on otherwise beneficial potentials of such insects in our ecosystems.     

Study of heat exposure in the work environment in Jeddah

The present work was conducted to define the magnitude of the problem of heat exposure in Jeddah and the role of both the climatic and the industrial factors on the total heat load. Indoor heat exposure was studied in an industrial complex of 5 plants for cables' manufacturing. Outdoor heat exposure was studied in shaded and unshaded operations in Jeddah Islamic Port (JIP). The heat exposure parameters, including air temperature (Ta), wet bulb temperature (Tw), and globe temperature (Tg), as well as the wet bulb globe temperature (WBGT) heat stress index, the relative humidity and the air velocity, were assessed at representative locations. Results of the study indicated that:

Determination of heavy metal contents in water,sediments, and fish tissues of Shizothorax plagiostomus in river Panjkora at Lower Dir,Khyber Pakhtunkhwa,Pakistan

The present study was conducted to investigate the contamination of water, sediments, and fish tissues with heavy metals in river Panjkora at Lower Dir, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. Water, sediments, and fish (Shizothorax plagiostomus) samples were collected from September 2012 to January 2013 at three different sites (upstream site at Sharigut, sewage site at Timergara, and downstream site at Sadoo) of river Panjkora. The concentrations of heavy metals in water were in the order Zn?>?Cu?≈?Pb?>?Ni?≈?Cd with mean values of 0.30, 0.01, 0.01, 0.0 and 0.0 mg/l, respectively, which were below the maximum permissible limits of WHO for drinking water. In sediments, heavy metals were found in the order Cu?>?Zn?>?Ni?>?Pb?>?Cd with mean concentrations of 50.6, 38.7, 9.3, 8, and 0.4 mg/kg, respectively. Ni and Cd were not found in any fish tissues, but Zn, Cu, and Pb were detected with the mean concentration ranges of 0.04–1.19, 0.03–0.12, and 0.01–0.09 μg/g, respectively. The present study demonstrates that disposal of waste effluents causes a slight increase in the concentration of heavy metals in river Panjkora as revealed by variation in metal concentrations from upstream to downstream site. Sewage disposal was also found to change physicochemical characteristics of Panjkora water. At present, water and fish of river Panjkora are safe for human consumption, but the continuous sewage disposal may create problems in the future.     

Land-use change and its socio-environmental impact in Eastern Ethiopia’s highland

The Alemaya district (Eastern Ethiopian highlands) is characterized by undulating physiographic features with arid, semi-arid, and humid climatic conditions. This study evaluated socio-environmental changes in land use and land cover during 1985–2011. Screen digitization on remotely sensed data (i.e., Landsat images from 1985 to 2011) was performed to produce 10 classes of land use and land cover. Then, final land-use maps were prepared using a geographic information system following field verification and accuracy assessment. The drying of water bodies, including the prominent lakes Alemaya, Adele, and Tinike, had been the most important environmental change observed. Degraded land, marsh, perennial cropland, and residential areas increased by 37, 438, 42, and 190 %, respectively, whereas grassland, plantation, shrubland, and temporal cropland decreased by 64, 11, 63, and 29 %, respectively. The increase in land degradation (+37 %), the other major observed problem, has made large areas unsuitable for agriculture and has reduced crop productivity. These land-use and land-cover changes have affected both the environment and the livelihoods of local residents; especially the issue related to land degradation requires urgent attention.     

Synthesis of piperazine functionalized magnetic sporopollenin: a new organic-inorganic hybrid material for the removal of lead(II) and arsenic(III) from aqueous solution

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - The present work describes the successful functionalization/magnetization of bio-polymeric spores of Lycopodium clavatum (sporopollenin) with...