Environmental Protection Research最新文献

{"title":"Impacts of Power Transmission and Distribution on Trace Metals Loads in Soils, Telfairia Occidentalis and Related Human Health Problems in South-South, Nigeria","authors":"G. Ebong, Idongesit Bassey, I. Bassey, E. Ikpe","doi":"10.37256/epr.4220244422","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.37256/epr.4220244422","url":null,"abstract":"The generation, transmission, and distribution of power have both positive and negative effects. However, this has not been effectively assessed and documented in the study area. Hence, this research was conducted to assess the impact of power transmission and distribution activities on the levels of trace metals in soil, including Telfairia occidentalis (T. occidentalis). In this research, topsoil and T. occidentalis were obtained from the vicinity with high tension copper cables at Ikono, Ibiono Ibom, Itu, Uyo, and Uruan in Akwa Ibom State. Similar samples were obtained 100 m away from areas with high-tension copper cables and used as controls. The mean values (mg kg-1) of cadmium(Cd), copper (Cu), iron (Fe), and lead (Pb) obtained in soil were 2.13 ± 1.24, 43.52 ± 9.28, 1,265.84 ± 287.33, and 27.39± 5.66, respectively. Whereas, the mean concentrations (mg kg-1) of these metals in T. occidentalis were 0.17 ± 0.10, 12.98 ± 2.50, 217.81 ± 62.56, and 1.47 ± 1.40, respectively. The results obtained revealed that the mean concentrations of Cd, Cu, and Fe in soil were higher than their recommended safe limits, while the mean concentrations of Cu, Fe, and Pb in T. occidentalis exceeded the limits. The results indicated that the mean concentrations of all metals in the impacted soils were higher than in the control plot for both soil and T. occidentalis. Pollution models employed showed that soils and T. occidentalis from the studied locations were highly impacted by metals originating mainly from power transmission and distribution activities. The estimated daily intake rate of all the metals through soils and T. occidentalis was investigated for the children and adult groups within their recommended oral reference doses except for Cd. The non-cancerous risks for the children and adult groups for both soil and T. occidentalis were less than than 1 mg kg-1 day-1. However, the children’s class was more susceptible. Cancer risks for both the children and adult groups via soil and T. occidentalis were within the acceptable limit, but the entire cancer risk for the children via T. occidentalis from the Uyo vicinity was higher than the safe limit. This study revealed the effects of power transmission and distribution activities on the metal loads in soil and T. occidentalis and the related human health problems. Consequently, consistent exposure to soil particles impacted by high-tension cables and the cultivation of edible plants under high-tension cables should be avoided.","PeriodicalId":491292,"journal":{"name":"Environmental Protection Research","volume":"63 3","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-07-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141808426","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Organochlorine Pesticide and Total Petroleum Hydrocarbon Pollution of Ilaje Coastal River Sediments, Ondo State, Nigeria","authors":"A. Adelodun, Sunday Ajibade, Oluwaseun Fadaini, Olayinka Oluwasina, O. Ibigbami","doi":"10.37256/epr.4120244007","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.37256/epr.4120244007","url":null,"abstract":"We investigated the presence of organochlorine pesticides (OCPs) and total petroleum hydrocarbons (TPHs) on the surface sediments sampled at the Ilaje coastal river in Ondo State, Nigeria. The samples were taken at five locations along the coast to determine their distribution in surface sediments and identify the input of industrial activities. The identified OCPs included G-BHC, d-BHC, chlorothalonil, alachlor, aldrin, dacthal, heptachlor-epoxide, g-chlordane, and trans-nonachlor, accounting for roughly 99% of the total detectable in the samples. The pesticide concentrations (dry weight) were ≤ 326.98 ng/g, with an average value of 15.49 ng/g. The pesticide levels at the various studied locations were in this order: Idiogba Police > Igbokoda > Idiogba Subu > Ayetoro > Eyunona. Furthermore, considerable negative and positive correlations exist between the various components of chlorinated pesticides. Based on the dry weight, TPH values in the samples ranged from 5.42 to 22.53 ng/g, in the order Eyunona > Idiogba Police > Idiogba Subu > Ayetoro > Igbokoda. Our data suggest that the hydrocarbons in the sediment matrices arise from anthropogenic causes other than oil spillage, such as water transportation and residential waste discharge, storm waters, rural runoff, etc. Although pollution levels are generally low, there is a need for regular monitoring and enforcement of stringent implementation of environmental laws and standards designed to curb any potential environmental pollution arising from oil spills and indiscriminate waste disposals in the coastal community.","PeriodicalId":491292,"journal":{"name":"Environmental Protection Research","volume":" 19","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-04-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140692935","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Polyvinyl Alcohol/Graphene Oxide Nanocomposite Membrane for Highly Efficient Oil/Water Mixture Separation","authors":"Maryam Davardoostmanesh, Hossein Ahmadzadeh","doi":"10.37256/epr.3220233427","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.37256/epr.3220233427","url":null,"abstract":"The growing amount of oily wastewater caused by frequent oil spill accidents poses a severe threat to the ecological environment. Therefore, the development of highly efficient oil/water separation methods is highly necessary. This work reports the preparation of a nanocomposite membrane using graphene oxide (GO)/polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) coated on steel meshes for oil/water mixture separation. PVA firmly anchors GO nanosheets onto the mesh surface through strong hydrogen bonds using glutaraldehyde (GA) as a crosslinker. This nanocomposite membrane exhibited superhydrophilic and underwater superoleophobic properties, with the highest oil contact angle of 158º due to its highly rough structure. The synergistic effects of GO and PVA further improved the superhydrophilicity of the prepared membrane, due to the hydrophilic nature of both GO and PVA. The separation efficiencies and water flux for a variety of oil/water mixtures were above 97.8% and 6000.0 L m−2 h−1, respectively. The prepared membrane showed excellent chemical resistance under harsh conditions without evident change in its surface wettability. Moreover, its underwater superoleophobicity was maintained after 10 cycles of abrasion testing.","PeriodicalId":491292,"journal":{"name":"Environmental Protection Research","volume":" 3","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-11-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"135141913","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Beyond the Frontlines: Assessing PPE Waste Disposal in Lahore's Major Public Hospitals During COVID-19 and its Environmental Consequences","authors":"Muhammad Khaleeq Uz Zaman, Naeem Abbas, Muhammad Irfan, Muhammad Hammad Khan, Farah Deeba, Khuram Shehzad Khan","doi":"10.37256/epr.3220233430","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.37256/epr.3220233430","url":null,"abstract":"The COVID-19 pandemic spread around the world like fire in a forest. Many preventative measures were suggested, among which one was the use of PPE. PPE was already being used in hospitals to prevent the spread of contagious diseases. The current pandemic led to an enormous increase in PPE usage, both in hospitals and domestic circuits. However, it has been observed that PPE waste is not being handled and administered appropriately in some major hospitals in Lahore, Pakistan. This mishandling can lead to the rapid spread of diseases, more specifically, the current pandemic, COVID-19. Our study aimed to describe the management of PPE waste in public hospitals. The data was collected by direct and indirect observations of staff in the hospital, including the ones in administration, and the way they managed the waste. The condition of infectious waste in the waste depots of hospitals was also observed and noted. It was observed that not all the hospitals were following the guidelines provided by the WHO about PPE waste. Segregation, storage and transportation were below Pakistan’s biosafety rules for 2015 and WHO standards. It could lead to many health and environmental problems. Our study highlights the need for staff training regarding segregation and the proper storage and disposal of hospitals' waste. Certain recommendations in this regard have also been reported to put a stop to the issue of PPE waste and its drastic consequences for the environment.","PeriodicalId":491292,"journal":{"name":"Environmental Protection Research","volume":"11 7","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-11-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"135392226","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"In-situ Formation of Sulphur-Trapped Petroleum Coke via Thermal Cracking of Vacuum Residue: A Practical Approach to Reduce Environmental Pollution","authors":"Supriyo Majumder, Shalini Gupta, Chiranjeevi Thota, Bharat L. Newalkar","doi":"10.37256/epr.3220232992","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.37256/epr.3220232992","url":null,"abstract":"Environmental regulations restrict the use of high-sulphur petroleum coke as a solid fuel due to the emission of a substantial amount of sulphur oxides (SOx) upon combustion. Therefore, the free sulphur present in petroleum coke needs to be reduced to achieve lower SOx emissions. This paper describes a novel and efficient method for the trapping of free sulphur in petroleum coke during its formation from vacuum residue in the presence of an additive. Among the various additives tested, calcium oxide (10 wt%) was found to be most effective for maximum trapping of free sulphur in petroleum coke. This sulphur-trapped petroleum coke reduces SO2 emissions by 67% upon combustion; hence, it can be used as a better fuel than regular high-sulphur petroleum coke. Thus, by replacing regular petroleum coke with this newly developed sulphur-trapped petroleum coke, environmental pollution can be reduced significantly.","PeriodicalId":491292,"journal":{"name":"Environmental Protection Research","volume":"14 5","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-11-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"135539634","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Recovery of Base Oil from Used Oil through Solvent Extraction Followed by Adsorption: A Review","authors":"Aftab Hasnat Khan, Nadia Batool, Abdul Aziz","doi":"10.37256/epr.3220232592","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.37256/epr.3220232592","url":null,"abstract":"Base oil is the major component of lubricating oil, which is present in its original form and used lubricating oil in a sufficient amount. This review article focuses on the recovery of base oil from used oil through solvent extraction followed by adsorption. Different solvents and various solvent-to-oil ratios are studied. Solvent selection is based on its ability to selectively dissolve the base oil from used oil and to reject the impurities in the solution. The percentage yield and quality of extracted oil usually depend upon the nature of the solvent, solvent-to-oil ratio, and nature of impurities. Various solvents and solvent-to-oil ratios are studied. However, results show that methyl ethyl ketone (MEK) is the best solvent because it gives the maximum sludge removal, is more easily recovered, and also has a low cost. A two-phase system occurs after adequate mixing of solvent and oil. Before solvent addition, oil is dehydrated to remove water present as impurities, and then light hydrocarbons are removed using vacuum distillation. After solvent addition, the extracted phase is separated, leaving behind the sludge phase, which consists of aggregates of impurities. The solvent is evaporated from the extracted phase. The extracted oil is put in contact with a suitable adsorbent to absorb the aromatic contents and heavy metals in it. In the end, additives are added to the recovered oil for the formulation of a new lubricant.","PeriodicalId":491292,"journal":{"name":"Environmental Protection Research","volume":"9 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-09-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"135477169","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Flood Disaster in Erbil City: Problems and Solutions","authors":"Shuokr Qarani Aziz, Shawnm Mudhafar Saleh, Sarkawt Hamarahim Muhamad, Sarwah Othman Ismael, Bahar Mohammed Ahmed","doi":"10.37256/epr.3220232993","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.37256/epr.3220232993","url":null,"abstract":"Several floods occurred in Erbil City in 2021 and 2022, which caused disaster in the city. 12 people died, thousands of houses and vehicles were destroyed, and numerous public projects such as electric stations and roads were damaged as well. Specifying reasons and providing suitable solutions are essential for minimizing damages. Thus, this research aimed to identify causes and offer scientific solutions for minimizing flood damage in the future. Several site visits for the locations of floods were carried out. Quantitative and qualitative data collection was conducted. Based on the catchment properties and maximum probable rainfall, the peak flood is 250, 200, 90, and 70 m3/s for Roshnbiri Bridge, Roshnbiri-Daratu Culvert, Korean Drainage Valley, and Daratu Natural Valley, respectively. Heavy rainfall, partial or full clogging of some inlets, sewers, and culverts, obstructions in watersheds, altering the direction of normal flow, technical and design problems, and disposal of waste in watersheds are the main factors contributing to the flood. Cleaning watersheds, maintaining storm sewers, providing new diversion channels, proper design of storm sewers, culverts, and bridges, eliminating barriers on the usual streams, and studying the master plans of the new projects and cities are the main solutions for minimizing flood disasters in Erbil City.","PeriodicalId":491292,"journal":{"name":"Environmental Protection Research","volume":"66 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-09-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"135769714","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}