Search results for "Pact"
showing 10 items of 2355 documents
Characterization of the Etna volcanic emissions through an active biomonitoring technique (moss-bags): Part 1 – Major and trace element composition
2013
Active biomonitoring using moss-bags was applied to an active volcanic environment for the first time. Bioaccumulation originating from atmospheric deposition was evaluated by exposing mixtures of washed and air-dried mosses (Sphagnum species) at 24 sites on Mt. Etna volcano (Italy). Concentrations of major and a large suite of trace elements were analysed by inductively coupled mass and optical spectrometry (ICP-MS and ICP-OES) after total acid digestion. Of the 49 elements analysed those which closely reflect summit volcanic emissions were S, Tl, Bi, Se, Cd, As, Cu, B, Na, Fe, Al. Enrichment factors and cluster analysis allowed clear distinction between volcanogenic, geogenic and anthropo…
Fuzzy environmental analogy index to develop environmental similarity maps for designing air quality monitoring networks on a large-scale
2019
All activities aimed at studying the primary causes and effects of air pollution cannot disregard the fact that it is necessary to have an optimal air quality monitoring network for assessing population exposure to air pollution and predicting the magnitude of the health risks. In the framework of a cooperation between the ARPA Sicilia Organization and the Department of Engineering, University of Palermo, research was performed to develop an innovative methodology useful for defining environmental similarity maps aimed at supporting the design of air quality monitoring networks at the regional scale. This approach is based on a new index called the fuzzy environmental analogy index (FEAI) b…
Processing and Properties of Biopolymer/Polyhydroxyalkanoates Blends
2011
In this paper, the processability and the performance of a biodegradable polymer, Mater-Bi, and of its blends with either a sample of poly (hydroxy alkanoates) (PHA) or with bacterial biomass containing PHAs were compared. Adding PHA or directly the biomass containing it allows improving the processability of the matrix. Moreover, the mechanical behaviour of the systems was compared considering two different preparation methods, namely compression and injection moulding. The injection moulded samples show poorer mechanical performances than those of the compression moulded systems. The impact strength significantly improves when PHA is added while it reduces when bacterial biomass is used i…
Research on ecological design to enhance comfort in open spaces of a city (Valencia, Spain). Utility of the physiological equivalent temperature (PET)
2013
For many years now, research has focused on issues concerning making cities easier to live in and some of the most important of these concern climatology and thermal comfort issues. There is also a growing awareness of the importance of open spaces and green areas, as key elements in providing opportunities for human interaction, leisure and physical exercise. They are important for all inhabitants, but particularly so for children and the elderly population. Of especial interest are the studies which have examined the interaction of comfort with the urban climate. This issue was studied throughout the twentieth century, but recently the role which can be played by biometeorological indices…
Efficiency of wastewater treatment facilities: The influence of scale economies.
2018
The water cycle, from catchment to discharge, is a sector that involves an important investment and operation and maintenance costs. In particular, sewage treatment is a challenge for governments because they are having to consider economic, environmental, and social aspects. Within the European Union, implementation of Directive 91/271/EEC is responsible for the location of wastewater treatment facilities in the territory, due to the requirement that all urban areas must have this infrastructure to reduce the environmental impact of treated water in water bodies. Different sizes of municipalities affect the design of each wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) and cause variations in the operat…
Occurrence of acidic pharmaceuticals and personal care products in Turia River Basin: From waste to drinking water
2014
The occurrence of 21 acidic pharmaceuticals, including illicit drugs, and personal care products (PPCPs) in waste, surface and drinking water and in sediments of the Turia River Basin (Valencia, Spain) was studied. A liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) method was developed for the determination of these PPCPs with electrospray (ESI) in negative ionization (NI) mode. Ammonium fluoride in the mobile phase improved ionization efficiency by an average increase in peak area of 5 compared to ammonium formate or formic acid. All studied compounds were detected and their concentration was waste water>surface water>drinking water. PPCPs were in waste water treatment plants (WWT…
The way forward : Can connectivity be useful to design better measuring and modelling schemes for water and sediment dynamics?
2018
For many years, scientists have tried to understand, describe and quantify water and sediment fluxes, with associated substances like pollutants, at multiple scales. In the past two decades, a new concept called connectivity has been used by Earth Scientists as a means to describe and quantify the influences on the fluxes of water and sediment on different scales: aggregate, pedon, location on the slope, slope, watershed, and basin. A better understanding of connectivity can enhance our comprehension of landscape processes and provide a basis for the development of better measurement and modelling approaches, further leading to a better potential for implementing this concept as a managemen…
Technical assessment and evaluation of environmental models and software: Letter to the Editor
2011
International audience; This letter details the collective views of a number of independent researchers on the technical assessment and evaluation of environmental models and software. The purpose is to stimulate debate and initiate action that leads to an improved quality of model development and evaluation, so increasing the capacity for models to have positive outcomes from their use. As such, we emphasize the relationship between the model evaluation process and credibility with stakeholders (including funding agencies) with a view to ensure continued support for modelling efforts. Many journals, including EM&S, publish the results of environmental modelling studies and must judge the w…
Disposal of green roofs: A contribution to identifying an “Allowed by legislation” end–of–life scenario and facilitating their environmental analysis
2022
The rapid and widespread deployment of green roofs requires the need to address their disposal and to assess the environmental impact of this phase of their life cycle to understand whether their current large-scale application may pose a problem. A review of the literature on green roofs environmental performance (particularly Life Cycle Assessment studies) has highlighted the lack of a standardized, commonly adopted, procedure for determining the treatments, recovery and/or disposal, to be assigned to waste from the removal of green roofs. In this regard, it should be mentioned that there is a lack of ad hoc legislation on the disposal of this technology (to the best of the authors’ knowl…
Deep drawing versus incremental forming processes: A comparative cradle to gate analysis
2012
The evaluation and reduction of the environmental impact of manufacturing processes have become a crucial issue in the last few years, addressing the interest of industrial and academic research towards greener solutions and technologies. Reducing input materials and energy requirements has become an imperative action in the industrial practice. As a matter of fact, strong is the concern on lightweight solutions and technologies for sheet stamping operations especially in the automotive sector. However, the knowledge on how impactful such processes are is still poor. In this paper, a comparison between a traditional deep drawing and an single point incremental forming process is investigate…