Search results for "contamination"
showing 10 items of 916 documents
Seagrasses as biological barriers against anthropic input in coastal marine ecosystems
2009
Stable carbon and nitrogen ratios (δ13Corg and δ15Ntot) of core sediments from the Gulf of Palermo (NW Sicily): implications for the carbon source
2010
ASSESSMENT OF HEAVY METAL CONTAMINATION IN TERRACES FOR PUBLIC USE RECOVERED IN THE CITY OF PALERMO AND IN AGRICULTURAL TERRACES
2017
The contamination by heavy metals in the soil is nowadays considered an indicator of environmental pollution caused by to several factors, such as waste disposal, industrial discharges and the use of irrigation water. Developed in collaboration with SO.GEST Ambiente Laboratory, in Palermo, this study had as a purpose to monitor the levels of heavy metals - Cd, Cr, Fe, Mn, Pb, Zn -both in public lands and in agricultural terrains. All the soil samples collected have been subjected to an acid extraction process by using HCL and eventually to a mass spectrometer-based analysis for the quantitative/ qualitative determination, specifically by the technique of flame atomic absorption spectrophoto…
ARCHITETTURE PER LE ACQUE SOTTERRANEE. CONSERVAZIONE E VALORIZZAZIONE DEL PATRIMONIO CAVO A PALERMO
2019
The valorisation policies and protection of “visible” architectural heritage are often promoted by the public opinion, that immediately perceives in the artefacts degradation the risk of an irreparable loss. Conversely, the safeguard of the underground built heritage is ever more difficult to achieve. It is the case of the "hollow architecture" functional to ensuring water provisioning in the Piana di Palermo: “horizontal wells” and “qanat”. These artefacts date back to the sixteenth century, though an older dating is not to be excluded. The need for studies on underground historical construction is more evident if we consider the scarcity of documentary material and specialised literature.…
A Novel Ionic Exchange Membrane Crystallizer to Recover Magnesium Hydroxide from Seawater and Industrial Brines
2020
A novel technology, the ion exchange membrane crystallizer (CrIEM), that combines reactive and membrane crystallization, was investigated in order to recover high purity magnesium hydroxide from multi-component artificial and natural solutions. In particular, in a CrIEM reactor, the presence of an anion exchange membrane (AEM), which separates two-compartment containing a saline solution and an alkaline solution, allows the passage of hydroxyl ions from the alkaline to the saline solution compartment, where crystallization of magnesium hydroxide occurs, yet avoiding a direct mixing between the solutions feeding the reactor. This enables the use of low-cost reactants (e.g., Ca(OH)2) without …
Forensic Microbiology: A Case Series Analysis
2019
The importance of microbial colonization of human organs in a living body has long been assessed. What still remains unclear are the microbial changes occurring after death, thus leading to the advent of a relatively novel field of research called “Postmortem microbiology”. It is applied to several forensic fields such as post-mortem interval assessment and cause of death determination. In this contest, a major limit is thus represented by the correct interpretation of the microbial data and by the actual lack of standard procedures. Here we propose a standard operative protocol in order to avoid false positives given by contamination (the main problem), post-mortem translocation and agonal…
Resistance to disinfection of a polymicrobial association contaminating the surface of elastomeric dental impressions.
2009
The aim of this study was to evaluate the ability to resist disinfection of a polymicrobial association contaminating the surface of dental impressions obtained with two different elastomers: a polyether (Impregum) and an addition-polymerized silicone (Elite). Impressions were contaminated with a mixture of three biofilm-forming microorganisms (Staphylococcus aureus, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Candida albicans) and disinfected immediately after contamination, or after microbial layers were allowed to develop during a six-hour storage. Two commercial disinfectants were tested: MD 520 containing 0.5% glutaraldehyde and Sterigum Powder without glutaraldehyde. Residual contamination was recover…
Women and transnational organized crime: the ambiguous case of the italian Mafias
2022
This chapter examines the transformation of the roles of women in Italian organized crime groups. Starting from a comparative analysis of the way in which – over time – the different manifestations of female power and male domination in certain organized crime groups (Cosa Nostra and others) have changed, we seek to understand what female power is in these contexts and what are the circumstances which make it legitimate and visible, what are the different modalities in which it expresses itself over time, in different locations and criminal contexts. The studies of women’s roles in mafias have shown how, over time, these have changed, particularly in terms of their ‘visibility’. Over the la…
The organic carbon derived from sewage sludge as a key parameter determining the fate of trace metals.
2007
8 pages; International audience; In a sandy agricultural soil of south-west of France, continuously cultivated with maize and amended with sewage-sludge over 20 years, the behavior of three trace metals (Cu, Pb, and Zn) was studied during the sludge applications (1974-1993) and after its cessation (1993-1998). Using the delta13C analysis, the dynamics of different sources of organic matter were followed in order to elucidate the influence of the sludge-derived organic matter on the fate of trace metals in the soil and its particle size fractions. This study revealed that sludge-derived organic matter contributed to the formation of macroaggregates through the binding of preexisting microagg…
Gold coated porous silicon nanocomposite as a substrate for photoluminescence-based immunosensor suitable for the determination of Aflatoxin B1.
2017
Abstract A rapid and low cost photoluminescence (PL) immunosensor for the determination of low concentrations of Aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) has been developed. This immunosensor was based on porous silicon (PSi) covered by thin gold layer (Au) and modified by antibodies against AFB1 (anti-AFB1). PSi layer was formed on silicon substrate, then the surface of PSi was covered by 30 nm layer of gold (PSi/Au) using electrochemical and chemical deposition methods and in such ways PSi/Au (El.) and PSi/Au (Chem.) structures were formed, respectively. In order to find PSi/Au the most efficiently suitable for PL-based sensor design, structure several different PSi/Au (El.) and PSi/Au (Chem.) structures were…