Search results for "Environmental engineering"

Structure and Sensory Analyses of Tainting Substances in Finnish Freshwater Environments

1988

GC/MS/SNIFF/TASTE methods have been used in Finland to identify the causes of three tainting problems in water and one in fish nets. Structure determination was often verified by comparison with authentic compounds. Algal growth was implicated to be the source of geosmin and MIB in river water in Northern Finland and was associated with the appearance of tainting problems in raw water and reservoir water in Åland county. Terpenoids (e.g. camphor), degradation products of natural lipids (e.g. aldehydes, ketones and unsaturated aliphatic compounds) and volatile organohalogen compounds were frequently found in contaminated water but showed minor tainting effects compared to geosmin and MIB. Di…

The social benefits of restoring water quality in the context of the Water Framework Directive: A comparison of willingness to pay and willingness to…

2009

The Water Framework Directive (WFD) is by far the most important piece of water legislation in Europe for the coming decades. Its main aim is to achieve "good ecological status" for all water resources by 2015. The economic valuation of the non-market benefits derived from improving water quality is an important input in assisting the design and implementation of efficient and effective water management policies. In this study, the contingent valuation method has been applied with a double purpose. On the one hand, we have estimated the value of a hypothetical improvement in water quality of a river asking individuals about their willingness to pay, and on the other hand, the issue of exemp…

Valuing water supply infrastructure improvements using life satisfaction data as a complement to contingent valuation

2019

Estimating willingness to pay for desalinated seawater: the case of Djerba Island, Tunisia

2017

AbstractWater scarcity can be a growth-limiting factor. Non-conventional water resources, such as desalinated water, represent an alternative means of guaranteeing access to water while reducing water stress. In this study, a contingent valuation survey carried out in Djerba Island, Tunisia, allows the joint modelling of two decisions: societal support for the construction of a desalination plant and households’ willingness to pay for desalinated water. To the best of the authors’ knowledge, no study to date has addressed this relationship. We find that although a clear majority of households are in favour of using desalinated water, far fewer are willing to pay for it. The article conclude…

Innovative Educational Program for Biogas Production Carried Out at University of Hradec Králové (CZ) and at University of Opole (PL)

2016

Abstract Recently, there is a growing pressure on a rapid construction of agricultural biogas plants, particularly in the Czech-Polish border region. It is an area with large expanses of agricultural land which can serve to supply biogas plants with biomass. This strategy should contribute to harmonize the common agricultural policy of the European Union. A need for qualified operators of these stations on this territory is also increasing. Therefore we first include a demonstration of an education program for students in the field of agricultural waste anaerobic fermentation and biogas production. We present here the first part of an innovative approach which we use in the teaching program…

The impact of COVID-19 on alternative and local food systems and the potential for the sustainability transition: Insights from 13 countries

2021

The COVID-19 pandemic has been a major stress test for the agri-food system. While most research has analysed the impact of the pandemic on mainstream food systems, this article examines how alternative and local food systems (ALFS) in 13 countries responded in the first months of the crisis. Using primary and secondary data and combining the Multi-Level Perspective with social innovation approaches, we highlight the innovations and adaptations that emerged in ALFS, and how these changes have created or supported the sustainability transition in production and consumption systems. In particular, we show how the combination of social and technological innovation, greater citizen involvement,…

Applicability of Waste Engine Oil for the Direct Production of Electricity

2021

New methods for the use of waste products as input for other technologies are a constant subject of research efforts. One such product is waste engine oil. Due to the constantly increasing number of motor vehicles in the world, the recycling or application of engine oils for energy production purposes is currently of considerable importance. This paper contains research regarding the analysis of the electro-oxidation potential of waste engine oil, and thus the possibility of using such oil as a material in fuel cells. The research demonstrates the basic possibility of the electro-oxidation of this oil emulsion on a platinum electrode in an acid electrolyte (aqueous solution of H2SO4). It wa…

The Membrane-Less Microbial Fuel Cell (ML-MFC) with Ni-Co and Cu-B Cathode Powered by the Process Wastewater from Yeast Production

2020

Research related to measurements of electricity production was combined with parallel wastewater parameter reduction in a membrane-less microbial fuel cell (ML-MFC) fed with industry process wastewater (from a yeast factory). Electrodes with Ni–Co and Cu–B catalysts were used as cathodes. A carbon electrode (carbon cloth) was used as a reference due to its widespread use. It was demonstrated that all analyzed electrodes could be employed as cathodes in ML-MFC fed with process wastewater from yeast production. Electricity measurements during ML-MFC operations indicated that power (6.19 mW) and current density (0.38 mA·cm−2) were the highest for Ni–Co electrodes. In addition, during the explo…

A Short-Term Data Based Water Consumption Prediction Approach

2019

A smart water network consists of a large number of devices that measure a wide range of parameters present in distribution networks in an automatic and continuous way. Among these data, you can find the flow, pressure, or totalizer measurements that, when processed with appropriate algorithms, allow for leakage detection at an early stage. These algorithms are mainly based on water demand forecasting. Different approaches for the prediction of water demand are available in the literature. Although they present successful results at different levels, they have two main drawbacks: the inclusion of several seasonalities is quite cumbersome, and the fitting horizons are not very large. With th…

Identification of Potential Locations for Run-of-River Hydropower Plants Using a GIS-Based Procedure

2019

The increasing demand for renewable and sustainable energy sources has encouraged the development of small run-of-river plants. Preliminary studies are required to assess the technical and economic feasibility of such plants. In this context, the identification of optimal potential run-of-river sites has become a key issue. In this paper, an approach that is based on GIS tools coupled with a hydrological model has been applied to detect potential locations for a run-of-river plant. A great number of locations has been analyzed to identify those that could assure the achievement of different thresholds of potential power. The environmental and economic feasibility for small hydropower projec…