Environmental Pollution Problems Research Articles

Laboratory Studies on Strength Properties of Concrete using Fly Ash and GGBS

Abstract: Cement, fine aggregate, coarse aggregate, and water are the basic raw materials used in the manufacture of concrete. The naturally available aggregates are very precious and need to be conserved. Waste materials such as fly ash and Ground Granulated Blast Furnace Slag (GGBS) which cause disposal problems, and environmental problems can be economically used as a partial replacement for both fine and coarse aggregate. The present research focuses on conducting laboratory studies on the properties of M30 grade concrete by replacing fine and coarse aggregate with fly ash and GGBS. The results show that the optimum percentage of partial replacement of fly ash and GGBS is 30% for both fine and coarse aggregate. The compressive strength of concrete increased by 15% and 24%, respectively, and the tensile strength of concrete nearly increased by 20% in both cases. In addition, the use of waste material helps to reduce the cost of construction while simultaneously solving the disposal and environmental pollution problems.

Enhancing glucaric acid production from myo-inositol in Escherichia coli by eliminating cell-to-cell variation.

Glucaric acid (GA) is a value-added chemical and can be used to manufacture food additives, anticancer drugs, and polymers. The non-genetic cell-to-cell variations in GA biosynthesis are naturally inherent, indicating the presence of both high- and low-performance cells in culture. Low-performance cells can lead to nutrient waste and inefficient production. Furthermore, myo-inositol oxygenase (MIOX) is a key rate-limiting enzyme with the problem of low stability and activity in GA production. Therefore, eliminating cell-to-cell variations and increasing MIOX stability can select high-performance cells and improve GA production. In this study, an in vivo GA bioselector was constructed based on GA biosensor and tetracycline efflux pump protein TetA to continuously select GA-efficient production strains. Additionally, the upper limit of the GA biosensor was improved to 40 g/L based on ribosome-binding site optimization, achieving efficient enrichment of GA high-performance cells. A small ubiquitin-like modifier (SUMO) enhanced MIOX stability and activity. Overall, we used the GA bioselector and SUMO-MIOX fusion in fed-batch GA production and achieved a 5.52-g/L titer in Escherichia coli, which was 17-fold higher than that of the original strain.IMPORTANCEGlucaric acid is a non-toxic valuable product that was mainly synthesized by chemical methods. Due to the problems of non-selectivity, inefficiency, and environmental pollution, GA biosynthesis has attracted significant attention. The non-genetic cell-to-cell variations and MIOX stability were both critical factors for GA production. In addition, the high detection limit of the GA biosensor was a key condition for performing high-throughput screening of GA-efficient production strains. To increase GA titer, this work eliminated the cell-to-cell variations by GA bioselector constructed based on GA biosensor and TetA, and improved the stability and activity of MIOX in the GA biosynthetic pathway through fusing the SUMO to MIOX. Finally, these approaches improved the GA production by 17-fold to 5.52 g/L at 65 h. This study represents a significant step toward the industrial application of GA biosynthetic pathways in E. coli.

Collaborative Operation Optimization Scheduling Strategy of Electric Vehicle and Steel Plant Considering V2G

With the shortage of fossil fuels and the increasingly serious problem of environmental pollution, low-carbon industrial production technology has become an effective way to reduce industrial carbon emissions. Electrified steel plants based on electronic arc furnaces (EAF) can reduce most carbon emissions compared with traditional steel production methods, but the production steps have fixed electricity consumption behavior, and impact loads are easily generated in the production process, which has an impact on the stability of the power system. EV has the characteristics of a mobile energy storage unit. When a large number of EVs are connected to the power grid, they can be regarded as distributed energy storage units with scheduling flexibility. Through the orderly scheduling of EVs, the spatial–temporal transfer of EV charging and discharging load can be realized. Therefore, the EV situated in the steel plant’s distribution network node has the capacity to be utilized by providing peak shaving and valley filling services for the steel production load. This study proposes an operation optimization scheduling method for EVs and steel plants. Taking the lowest overall operating cost as the objective, an optimal scheduling model considering EVs operation, steel plant, and distributed generator is established. Based on the IEEE-33 node distribution network model considering distributed generators, the proposed model is simulated and analyzed, and the effectiveness of the EV steel plant operation optimization scheduling strategy is investigated.

Comparative Analysis of the Predictive Performance of an ANN and Logistic Regression for the Acceptability of Eco-Mobility Using the Belgrade Data Set

To solve the problem of environmental pollution caused by road traffic, alternatives to vehicles with internal combustion engines are often proposed. As such, eco-mobility microvehicles have significant potential in the fight against environmental pollution, but only on the condition that they are widely accepted and that they replace the vehicles that predominantly pollute the environment. With this in mind, this study aims to elucidate the main variables that influence the acceptability of these vehicles, using prediction models based on binary logistic regression and a multilayer artificial neural network—a multilayer perceptron (ANN). The data of a random sample obtained via an online questionnaire, answered by 503 inhabitants of Belgrade (Serbia), were used for training and testing the model. A multilayer perceptron with 9 and 7 neurons in two hidden layers, a hyperbolic tangent activation function in the hidden layer, and an identity function in the output layer performed slightly better than the binary logistic regression model. With an accuracy of 85%, a precision of 79%, a recall of 81%, and an area under the ROC curve of 0.9, the multilayer perceptron model recognized the influential variables in predicting acceptability. The results of the model indicate that a respondent’s relationship to their current environmental pollution, the frequency of their use of modes of transport such as bicycles and motorcycles, their mileage for commuting, and their personal income have the greatest influence on the acceptability of using eco-mobility vehicles.

Dynamic Bayesian Game Optimization Method for Multi-Energy Hub Systems with Incomplete Load Information

The interconnection of Energy Hub can enhance the energy efficiency and reliability associated with the independent operation of energy systems. However, the traditional optimal scheduling methods are hard to tackle the situation with the incomplete load information and competitive constraints of a multi-Energy Hub. This paper proposes a dynamic Bayesian game optimization scheduling strategy considering incomplete information on users’ load-side demand. First, a load forecast error coefficient is introduced to handle the conditional probability problem caused by incomplete information through the Bayesian rule. The constraint relationship among multi-Energy Hub under the dynamic price mechanism is analyzed to meet the economic and environmental coordination goals under load uncertainty. Second, extending from Nash equilibrium to Bayes Nash equilibrium proves the existence and uniqueness of Nash equilibrium solutions in Bayesian game models. The decision game algorithm is used to optimize the scheduling of the multi-Energy Hub and subsequently ensure the autonomous scheduling of the system and solve the information barriers. Finally, an Integrated Energy System composed of three Energy Hubs was used to validate the effectiveness and superiority of the proposed optimization method. Results show that under the Bayesian game decision, the multi-Energy Hub game model has reduced the total cost of the Integrated Energy System by 0.78%, which can improve the economic benefit and address the environmental pollution problem.

ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTION AND ITS IMPACT ON ECONOMIC GROWTH IN IRAQ (AN APPLIED STUDY ON THE REALITY OF THE IRAQI ECONOMY)

The research aims to study the environmental impacts resulting from the practice of various economic activities, which have serious repercussions on the environment, which represents the comprehensive container for the elements of natural wealth, and on society and life in general. The problem of environmental pollution is represented by the transformation of many environmental resources, represented by rivers, water bodies, air, and soil, from being free commodities to being economic commodities whose supply is characterized by relative commodities. This problem is expected to worsen if the volume of economic activity continues to increase. It is clear that economic progress is accompanied by an increase in the costs that must be borne to keep the environment clean, and economists distinguish between private costs and social costs. It is possible, in principle, to control or limit pollution resulting from economic activity through multiple means and policies, the most important of which is the policy of state intervention, directly or indirectly, through the use of its economic tools such as taxes and subsidies. The problem of environmental pollution is a global problem that no country can get rid of, and Iraq is one of the countries that has suffered greatly from this problem over the past three decades as a result of the scourges of wars, neglect, poverty, destruction, etc., all of which have had a negative impact on the Iraqi environment, in addition to the fact that Agricultural and industrial economic activities in particular and the methods used in them have also been reflected in the exacerbation of this problem.

Indian Constitutional Perspective of Environmental Justice: an Analytical Study with Reference to PIL and Precedents

The problem of environmental pollution has assumed massive and grave proportions over the decades. It has been left to the courts in India to go behind the letter of the law into the spirit of the law to find out the plausible solutions for the problem though evolution of the law of public nuisance into environmental law. Though the implementation of statutory provisions, as also by embracing various international doctrines, the Supreme Court of India as well as various High Courts have tried time and again to develop environment-friendly justice in India through the recognition of the principle of Sustainable Development. However, the actions of the judiciary had been under attacks from other organs of the State alleging that the judiciary is transgressing its boundaries and stepping into the realms of the executive and the legislature. This paper is an effort to trace the environmental justice in India and to find out whether judicial activism can actually lead to sustainable development.

Lead Isotope Signatures and Source Identification of Heavy Metals in Vegetable Soils Irrigated with Swine Wastewater of Jiangxi Province, China.

The rapid development of livestock and poultry industry in China has caused serious environment pollution problems. To understand the heavy metals accumulation and identify their sources, 7 heavy metals contents and lead isotope ratios were determined in 24 soil samples from vegetable fields irrigated with swine wastewater in Dongxiang County, Jiangxi Province, China. The results showed that the concentration of Cr, Ni, Cu, Zn, As, Cd and Pb in the swine wastewater irrigated vegetable soils varied from 38.5 to 86.4, 7.57 to 30.6, 20.0 to 57.1, 37.5 to 174, 9.18 to 53.1, 0.043 to 0.274 and 12.8 to 37.1mg/kg, respectively. The soils were moderately to heavily polluted by As, moderately polluted by Cr, Ni, Cu, Zn and Cd, and unpolluted to moderately polluted by Pb. Sampling soils were classified as moderately polluted according to the Nemerow comprehensive pollution index. Lead isotope and Principal Component Analysis (PCA) analysis indicated that swine wastewater irrigation and atmospheric deposition were the primary sources of the heavy metals.

Synthesis and photocatalytic properties of Cerium(IV) oxide graphene oxide composites

Semiconductor photocatalytic technology is a simple, efficient, and low-cost method for environmental pollution remediation. Cerium dioxide (CeO2), as a promising oxidative degradation photocatalyst, can solve the problems of energy shortage and environmental pollution. In this paper, cerium dioxide/graphene oxide composites were successfully synthesized by a one-pot hydrothermal method, achieving a degradation rate of 88.96 % for rose red dye in 150 min, and the introduction of reduced graphene oxide effectively improves the photocatalytic performance of pure cerium oxide.

Coupled Thermo Mechanical of Wasteglass Powder Reinforced Concrete Beam Subjected to Fire Loads

Abstract Waste Glass Powder (WGP) could be used as a cement replacement additive to manufacture concrete and solving the problem of environmental pollution. This article presents a numerical modeling of the thermo-mechanical behavior of a reinforced concrete beam based on an addition of 20% of the powder glass as a substitute for cement powder with modeling of concrete-steel contact using ANSYS software. To do this, a reinforced concrete beam based on glass powder is modeling in three dimensions by the finite element method (FEM) and it is subject to thermal loading during 2 hours in order to simulate the thermo thermo-mechanical response of the beam element. ANSYS provides a three-dimensional element (SOLID65) with the nonlinear model of brittle materials similar to the concrete materials. The element features a smeared crack analogy for cracking in tension zones and a plasticity algorithm to take into account the concrete crushing in compression zones.

Mechanisms of cadmium absorption in Suaeda heteroptera roots

Heavy metal contaminated soil is a common environmental pollution problem, which has a negative impact. The potential for the phytoremediation has been widely recognized. This study investigated the mechanisms of cadmium (Cd) absorption in Suaeda heteroptera Kitag., a dominant wetland plant in northern China. A hydroponic experiment was carried out to determine the Cd content in S. heteroptera roots after adding ion channel inhibitors and metabolic inhibitors. Furthermore, subcellular distribution and chemical forms of Cd in S. heteroptera were investigated. The results showed that Cd was mainly absorbed by S. heteroptera roots through calcium ion channels. Cd absorption by S. heteroptera roots was closely associated with the P-type ATPase, suggesting that Cd was actively absorbed by S. heteroptera roots. Cell wall precipitation and vacuole compartmentalization were the major mechanisms underlying absorption and tolerance to Cd. Cd in S. heteroptera root system was predominantly bound to proteins, pectinate, and phosphates, thereby reducing its toxicity. However, Cd was transformed into a highly active form and became more toxic at high concentrations.

Impacts of pilot carbon emission trading policies on urban environmental pollution: Evidence from China

The trading of carbon emissions is a crucial regulatory method to address environmental pollution issues. This study takes China's carbon emission trading pilot policy established in 2013 as a quasi-natural experiment and uses the DID model to empirically test the urban panel data from 2006 to 2019. The results show that the carbon emission trading pilot policy can effectively reduce urban environmental pollution, and this effect is more noticeable in mid-western cities, northern cities, cities with fewer resources, and large-scale cities. In addition, to address the urban environmental pollution problem through this policy, the government is encouraged to raise its environmental protection awareness and put more effort into the innovation of technology. In general, this study uses carbon emission trading policies from China to confirm that market-based incentive environmental regulation tools can effectively reduce environmental pollution in urban areas. These findings can provide more theoretical support and empirical evidence for the government to use mechanisms of the market to effectively solve pollution problems, improve ecological environment quality, and accelerate the realization of green economy.

Efficient degradation of tetracycline by activated peroxymonosulfate with high permeate flux FeTiOx reactive ceramic membrane: Membrane preparation, real wastewater application, and mechanism insight

Antibiotic residue in wastewater is one of the most worrying environmental pollution problems. In this study, innovative bimetallic nanocatalysts of FeTiOx were prepared. Benefiting from the synergistic effect between Ti and Fe, FeTiOx exhibited an excellent performance in activating peroxymonosulfate (PMS) for tetracycline (TC) degradation. Within 60 min, the TC treatment efficiency can reach 96 %. Mechanism study confirmed that the non-free radical pathway (1O2) and free radical pathway (O2−, OH, SO4−) co-participated during the TC treatment process. To further improve the separation function and efficiency, FeTiOx nanocatalyst was loaded on the ceramic membrane (CM) by a facile spraying method and a self-designed experimental device was constructed, which can be used to degrade TC with large volume. In the designed device, 2 L 40 mg/L TC wastewater can be degraded at one time with an efficiency of 85 % and a permeate flux of 1011.66 kg/m2·h when the transmembrane pressure (TMP) was 20 kPa. Finally, real pharmaceutical wastewater was treated and found that the removal rates of chemical oxygen demand (COD), ammonia nitrogen (NH3−N) and total organic carbon (TOC) were 70.3 %, 62.85 % and 32.8 %, respectively. The study provides a new strategy for treating wastewater pollutants by combining CM technology with advanced oxidation processes (AOPs).

The Impurity Removal and Comprehensive Utilization of Phosphogypsum: A Review.

Phosphogypsum (PG), a byproduct during the phosphoric acid production process, also known as the wet process, contains complex and diverse impurities, resulting in low utilization and considerable accumulation. This leads to a massive waste of land resources and a series of environmental pollution problems. Given the current urgent ecological and environmental situation, developing impurity removal processes with low energy consumption and high efficiency, exploring valuable resource recovery, preparing high value-added PG products, and broadening the comprehensive utilization ways of PG are significant strategies to promote the sustainable consumption of PG and sustainable development of the phosphorus chemical industry. This review comprehensively summarizes the advantages and disadvantages of existing PG impurity removal and utilization technologies and probes into the future development direction, which provides references and ideas for subsequent PG research.

Sustainable solutions of using deep eutectic solvents for hemp degumming: A combined experimental and DFT study

AbstractAiming at the problems of heavy environmental pollution, high energy consumption, and process complexity for current degumming techniques, three types of deep eutectic solvent (DES) systems as eco‐friendly sustainable solutions including choline chloride/urea (CU), ethylenediamine hydrochloride/ethylene glycol (EE) and choline chloride/imidazole (CI) were prepared and applied to the degumming of seed hemp. It was clearly showed that all three DES systems exhibit excellent degumming efficiency on seed hemp to remove noncellulosic components involving in pectin, hemicellulose, and lignin in amorphous region without damage to the structure and crystalline morphology of cellulose, leading to an increase of cellulose portion from 54% to about 80%. CI with the molar ratio of 3:8 at 175°C for 2.5 h give the best removal performance for hemicellulose and pectin while EE with molar ratio of 1:2 at 175°C for 3 h can remove lignin with highest efficiency. However, CU with the lowest cost reveals a balanced removal of three noncellulosic components, which may be the optimal choice for industrial production. Furthermore, density functional theory analysis disclosed the essential information of configuration stability for three DES systems.

Decoding the impact of fiscal decentralization on urban pollution intensity in China: A spatial econometric analysis

Utilizing city-level data from China, the paper employs a spatial econometric analysis to investigate the impact of fiscal decentralization on urban pollution. Empirical evidence indicates: (1) In the context of the emphasis of ecological civilization construction in China, an increase of fiscal autonomy for local governments is conducive to mitigating urban pollution intensity. Specifically, fiscal decentralization in one city not only promotes a reduction in local pollution intensity but alleviates environmental pollution problems in adjacent cities through spatial spillover effects. (2) Industrial structure upgrading and green technology progress become crucial measures for local governments to realize pollution reduction targets through fiscal expenditure. (3) Heterogeneity analysis reveals that the positive significance of decentralization is most prominent in the eastern China, while local governments with fiscal autonomy in central region tend to transfer pollution to neighboring cities. (4) There is a threshold characteristic for fiscal decentralization to promote a reduction in urban pollution intensity, and its marginal effect becomes more significant accompanied by continuous introduction of sophisticated foreign direct investment. Finally, the paper summarizes the potential significance of fiscal decentralization among Chinese local governments against the background of “Chinese-style decentralization” and proposes corresponding policy recommendations.

Bismuth nanocluster loaded on N-doped porous carbon with “memory catalysis” effect for efficient photocatalytic H2 generation and uranium(VI) reduction

Photocatalytic hydrogen production and uranium reduction can solve the problems of energy crisis and environmental pollution. Here, bismuth nanocluster loaded on N-doped porous carbon (Bi0/NC) with “memory catalysis” effect was prepared through a Bi-MOF precursor pyrolysis strategy for H2 generation and UO22+ reduction. The photocatalyst achieved an enhanced H2 production rate of 12.8 mmol g−1 h−1 and an improved UO22+ removal ratio of 95.9 %, which was 3.2 and 1.8 times as pristine carbon material, respectively. Moreover, both the H2 generation and UO22+ reduction showed a sustained activity under dark condition. Improved activity is ascribed to the optimized electronic property and the enhanced charge separation in Bi0/NC, which can be proved by the DFT calculation of projected density of state, Fermi level and charge density difference. This work provides a new strategy to realize the continuous H2 generation and U(VI) reduction in day and night.

The impact of green finance on the development of the non-hydro renewable energy industry: An empirical study based on data from 30 provinces in China

As the global environmental pollution problem has received more attention, low-carbon development has become mainstream, and replacing fossil-fuel energy with new energy has become a general trend. Green finance, an important measure for promoting low-carbon development, is critical to the development of the non-hydro renewable energy industry. Using China's provincial panel data from 2008 to 2021, we conducted an empirical analysis to explore the impact of green finance on the development of the non-hydro renewable energy industry. We found the following: (1) Nationally, green finance promoted the development of the non-hydro renewable energy industry. (2) The mechanism test results show that green finance promoted the development of the non-hydro renewable energy industry by improving the level of scientific and technological research as well as reducing the corporate financing cost. (3) Regionally, green finance could significantly promote the development of the non-hydro renewable energy industry in energy-rich regions, while the impact was not significant in energy-poor regions. (4) Green finance significantly promoted the development of the non-hydro renewable energy industry in the inland region, while the impact was not significant in the coastal region. (5) Green finance promoted the development of wind power generation more than it did photovoltaic generation. Based on the findings, the non-hydro renewable energy industry in various regions should be developed according to local conditions, giving full play to the promotional role of green finance.

A Review on Natural Gas Origin and Composition

Natural gas is obtained naturally. It is a hydrocarbon mixture. Natural gas is clean fossil fuel. It is safe when transported. Methane is main constituent of natural gas. It may also contain higher order hydrocarbons, carbon dioxide, helium, hydrogen sulphide and noble gases. World is facing problem of environmental pollution. To combat menace of pollution alternative sources of energy should be used. Natural gas is the cleanest fuel. Demand of natural gas all over the world is increasing.

Food waste as a raw material for production of polyhydroxyalkanoates: State and prospects

The growing problem of environmental pollution by plastic leads to the search not only for the most promising biodegradable polymer, but also for optimal raw materials for its production. Polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHA) — biodegradable polymers with physical and mechanical properties close to traditional plastics — are considered a potential solution to this problem. The production of PHA can be organized according to the principles of circular bioeconomy through biotechnological processing of secondary raw materials to produce a product with added value. However, an important component of the expansion of PHA production is the need to find the most promising secondary raw materials for its production. The PHA market in Russia and the global market have been analyzed, highlighting the demand in the packaging and food industries, biomedicine and agro- industry as the fundamental factor for the growth of PHA production. Bibliographic analysis using the PRISMA scheme and VOSviewer program allowed identifying three main directions of PHA research: search for optimal secondary raw materials among food waste, analysis of challenges in PHA production, and the ecological and economic effects of its implementation. Promising types of secondary raw materials have been revealed: vegetable oil production waste, fruit and vegetable process- ing waste, dairy whey, sugar and starch industry waste, spent coffee grounds and coffee oils extracted from them. Advantages and disadvantages of using secondary raw materials, options for improving their use in the production of PHA, and the main strains-producers were determined. To optimize the cost and processes of PHA production, further studies of food waste are required, aimed at developing approaches to increase the polymer yield, including through the use of secondary raw material preparation processes, and the search for the most productive strains synthesizing PHA.