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This is an article in the field of ceramics and composites. Natural porous minerals have many environmental attributes, such as pore structure, surface effect, environmental hydration effect, ion exchange characteristics and good adsorption capacity. The natural porous minerals have good harmony with the earth's ecological environment and can be applied to agricultural fertilizers, soil reclamation, feed breeding and other aspects of agricultural production. Based on the environmental attributes of natural porous minerals and their mineral materials, researchers should pay attention to exploiting their special functions in agricultural production and agricultural ecological environment. The self-purification function of natural porous minerals is a potential function endowed by nature for the survival and development of the earth's environment. Its resource characteristics and environmental attributes are very suitable for the application conditions of soil remediation and green agricultural production in China. The research on using natural porous minerals in agricultural production has an important economic influence on society.

Copyright of Multipurpose Utilization of Mineral Resources / Kuangchan Zonghe Liyong is the property of Multipurpose Utilization of Mineral Resources Editorial Office and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Microbial communities in freshwater sediments play an important role in organic matter remineralization, contributing to biogeochemical cycles, nutrient release, and greenhouse gases emissions. Bacterial and archaeal communities might show spatial or seasonal patterns and were shown to be influenced by distinct environmental parameters and anthropogenic activities, including pollution and damming. Here, we determined the spatial variation and the environmental variables influencing the abundant and rare bacterial and archaeal communities in the sediments of eutrophic-hypereutrophic reservoirs from a tropical urban area in Brazil. The most abundant microbes included mainly Anaerolineae and Deltaproteobacteria genera from the Bacteria domain, and Methanomicrobia genera from the Archaea domain. Microbial communities differed spatially in each reservoir, reflecting the establishment of specific environmental conditions. Locations with better or worst water quality, or close to a dam, showed more distinct microbial communities. Besides the water column depth, microbial communities were affected by some pollution indicators, including total phosphorus, orthophosphate, electrical conductivity, and biochemical oxygen demand. Distinct proportions of variation were explained by spatial and environmental parameters for each microbial community. Furthermore, spatial variations in environmental parameters affecting these communities, especially the most distinct ones, contributed to microbial variations mediated by spatial and environmental properties together. Finally, our study showed that different pressures in each reservoir affected the sediment microbiota, promoting different responses and possible adaptations of abundant and rare bacterial and archaeal communities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since the 1990s, sandstone-type uranium in the northern basin of China has become the main target for mining. Uranium mining can cause a series of impacts on the environment. A conceptual model of the geo-environment for sandstone-type uranium in northern China was described, which covers the changes in the geo-environmental characteristics in the natural state, in the mining process, during decommissioning and after treatment. Sandstone-type uranium is mainly distributed in the Songliao, Erlian, Ordos, Turpan–Hami and Ili Basins, which have arid climates and poor stratum permeability. Pitchblende is the main uranium-bearing mineral and is associated with iron, copper, coal, organic matter and other minerals. The mineral often has a low ore grade (0.01–1.0%) and high carbonate content (2–25%). Uranyl carbonate accounts for more than 90% of the total uranium in groundwater. The uranyl content is closely related to the TDS. The TDS of groundwater in the eastern and central ore belts is usually lower than 2 g/L, while in the western region, such as Xinjiang, it can exceed 10 g/L. In situ leaching (ISL) is the main mining method that results in groundwater pollution. Acid leaching leads to a pH decrease (<3), and heavy metals represented by U and Fe exceed the background values by hundreds of times, resulting in groundwater pollution. CO2 leaching is more environmentally friendly, and the excess ions are usually Ca2+, Mg2+, NO3− and HCO3−. Soil chemical anomalies originate mostly from wind erosion and precipitation leaching of decommissioned tailings. Uranium pollution is mainly concentrated within 20 cm of the surface, and the exceedance generally varies from two to 40 times. During ISL, a series of environmental measures will be taken to prevent pollution from being exposed to the surface. After treatment, the decommissioned uranium mines will likely have no impact on the surrounding environment. In the future, the protection of groundwater should be strengthened during production, and remediation methods based on electrokinetic, microbial and permeable reactive barrier (PRB) technology should be further researched. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Development of a model to evaluate the environmental properties of common outdoor plasters and mortars A requirement of the Construction Products Regulation (CPR) in the European Union states that construction materials and works must be designed in a way that throughout their entire life cycle, they have no exceedingly high negative impact on the environment. The objective of the current work was to develop a model capable to evaluate the environmental properties of outdoor plasters and mortars. Therefore, the extensive database recollected during 10 years of field and laboratory experiments by Fraunhofer IBP for these products was used as a basis and for validation, respectively. A three‐stage model was set up. In "Level 1", runoff volumes are calculated for a specific façade. In "Level 2", leached inorganic substances and their concentrations in runoff water are identified. As a final step, the evaluation of the environmental risk of stormwater runoff from façades covered with plasters and mortars takes place in "Level 3" using a groundwater risk assessment including leachate prognosis. It could be shown that vanadium, chromium and lead can be leached from mineral plasters and mortars during rain events in relevant concentrations. However, the evaluation showed that within usual application scenarios threshold values at a defined point of compliance are not expected to be exceeded. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the current climate aridization trend, irrigation amelioration is becoming increasingly important for the sustainable growth of heavy crops. The intensification of agricultural practices creates degradation risks for the soil cover. In this context, studies of soils intended for irrigated agriculture to prevent their degradation are of utmost importance. A soil-ameliorative survey of agrochernozem soils was conducted in the Pre-Urals southern forest–steppe zone, Sterlitamak district, Republic of Bashkortostan. The collected data indicate that the soil cover in the study area is constituted by Haplic and Luvic chernozem soils. These two soils are similar in their hydrophysical, physicochemical, agrochemical, and environmental properties, are highly resistant to degradation processes, and are suitable for irrigation amelioration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In July of 2017 and 2018, heavy rainfall events occurred, leading to significant damage in Japan. This study investigated the rainfall characteristics and environmental conditions for these heavy rainfall events using rain intensity data from operational weather radars and mesoscale analysis data. An automatic algorithm was developed to categorize precipitating cloud systems into five types, one with weaker rainfall (less than 10 mm h-1) and four with stronger rainfall (greater than or equal to 10 mm h-1), i.e., quasi-stationary convective clusters (QSCCs), propagating convective clusters (PCCs), short-lived convective clusters (SLCC), and other convective but unorganized rainfall. The rainfall amount due to the weaker rainfall was found to dominate the total rainfall in most of the analysis region; however, the contribution from the stronger rainfall types became larger than that from the weaker rainfall type in regions that experienced heavy rainfall. Among the stronger rain types, SLCCs dominate over the rainfall contributions from QSCCs or PCCs, whereas rainfalls from convective but unorganized systems are very minor. It was emphasized that the contribution from stronger rains due to organized systems with areas of 200 km² plays a major role in regions with significant amounts of rainfall during the heavy rainfall events examined here. The examination of the environmental conditions for the development of each system demonstrated that, from the viewpoint of moisture content, the stability conditions were more unstable in 2018 than in 2017. There is also a clear linkage in the time series between rainfall types and the environmental properties of precipitable water and vertical shear. It was found that both the column moisture content and the middle-to-upper-level relative humidity characterize the environmental conditions for the occurrence of the present heavy rainfall events. Features of the rainfall types and their environmental conditions were compared with the QSCC climatology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Three new ionic liquids with different anions and the same cation were synthesized from fatty acids through a metathesis reaction. All the ionic liquids were identified via NMR and FTIR and several properties (density, viscosity, thermal, and environmental) were measured. Traction tests were performed under different entrainment speeds (10–2000 mm/s), at slide-roll ratio (SRR) of 50% and 30 N-load, and at different temperatures (40, 60, 80 and 100 °C) using a mini-traction machine (MTM). Tribofilm formation tests were also made in the MTM at 50 N-load, 150 mm/s of entrainment speed, at SRR of 50% and temperature of 100 °C, for 60 min. This work showed that the alkyl chain length in the anion affects properties such as viscosity, toxicity, biodegradability and lubrication. Viscosity decreased with increasing alkyl chain length but only below 60 °C, at higher temperatures the viscosity values of the ionic liquids converge. The toxicity increases with the alkyl chain length; whereas, biodegradability shows the opposite behavior. These novel ionic liquids are much better from both toxicity and biodegradability points of view than the [N8881][TFSI] ionic liquid, which contains the same cation and anion not coming from fatty acids. The ionic liquids at low temperature (40 °C) performed under elastohydrodynamic lubrication and changed to mixed lubrication at higher temperatures and decreasing speeds, according to the alkyl chain length of each anion. All ionic liquids adsorbed on the steel surfaces, and the tribofilm thickness and the kinetics of formation were different. Unlabelled Image • Anion alkyl chain length has no influence on thermal stability. • Using carboxylic esters derived from natural sources results in more biodegradable ILs. • Increase in the length of alkyl chain led to a rise in toxicity. • [N 8881 ][C 12:0 ] showed lower traction coefficient at low speeds. • All FAILs studied formed a tribofilm with increasing thickness with time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Edge detection is one of the most important concepts used in processing of remote sensing images. The aim of edge detection is to mark the points of an image at which the rate of brightness changes sharply. Sharp changes in image features often represent important events and changes in environmental properties. In other words, edges can be defined as the boundary between two regions separated by two relatively distinct grey level properties. Most classic mathematical methods for edge detection are based on deriving original image pixels such as Laplacian gradient operator. In remote sensing images, because of the high variation rate, the edge detection operators may have some weaknesses in correct detection of the scope of complications. This study provides a novel approach for detecting the edges based on the features of remote sensing images. In this method, at first, thresholds of different regions of the image were determined in a piecewise manner; then, by using the proposed methods, appropriate thresholds were extracted, and finally, the boundary between these regions was extracted using Shannon entropy. The obtained results were compared with some standard algorithms and it was observed that the method was efficiently able to detect edges.

Anaerobic digestion (AD) is the most widely used method of sewage sludge treatment (SS) before its agricultural use. AD achieves the required “sterilisation” of pathogens and is able to cover the energy required by the process, reducing pre-treatment costs, thanks to the production of biogas. The SS agronomic (fertilizer properties), environmental (pollutants contents) characteristics and nuisance to people (odours and pathogens) need to be evaluated together for the safe and useful deployment of SS in agriculture. To evaluate SS properties an unsupervised (Principal Component Analysis) and a supervised (K nearest neighbours) chemometric approach was applied to rank digested SS for agronomic and environmental properties in comparison with other organic matrices for which the agronomic and/or environmental properties are well known or expected. To do so, complete chemical, biological and “impact on people” characterization was carried out on SS ingestate (SS-ing.) and SS digestate (SS-dig.) and another 10 biomasses. The SS-AD process enhanced the agronomic properties of sewage sludge and did not lead to a substantial concentration of pollutants because of the low degradation of organic matter. The best PCA performances were reached for amendment and fertilizer modules but the results found for the environment and nuisance to inhabitants were not satisfactory. The KNN approach proposed to evaluate the suitability of a biomass for agricultural purposes, represents a win-win approach as it allows one to avoid time-consuming and costly full field studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) can be used as chemical sentinels for the assessment of anthropogenic influences on Arctic environmental change. We present an overview of studies on PCBs in the Arctic and combine these with the findings from ArcRisk—a major European Union-funded project aimed at examining the effects of climate change on the transport of contaminants to and their behaviour of in the Arctic—to provide a case study on the behaviour and impact of PCBs over time in the Arctic. PCBs in the Arctic have shown declining trends in the environment over the last few decades. Atmospheric long-range transport from secondary and primary sources is the major input of PCBs to the Arctic region. Modelling of the atmospheric PCB composition and behaviour showed some increases in environmental concentrations in a warmer Arctic, but the general decline in PCB levels is still the most prominent feature. ‘Within-Arctic’ processing of PCBs will be affected by climate change-related processes such as changing wet deposition. These in turn will influence biological exposure and uptake of PCBs. The pan-Arctic rivers draining large Arctic/sub-Arctic catchments provide a significant source of PCBs to the Arctic Ocean, although changes in hydrology/sediment transport combined with a changing marine environment remain areas of uncertainty with regard to PCB fate. Indirect effects of climate change on human exposure, such as a changing diet will influence and possibly reduce PCB exposure for indigenous peoples. Body burdens of PCBs have declined since the 1980s and are predicted to decline further. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Seaweed cultivation not only provides economy benefits, but also remediates the environment contaminated by mariculture of animals (e.g., fish, shrimps). However, the response of microbial communities to seaweed cultivation is poorly understood. In this study, we analyzed the diversity, composition, and structure of water and sediment microbial communities at a seaweed, Gracilaria lemaneiformis , cultivation zone and a control zone near Nan'ao Island, South China Sea by MiSeq sequencing of 16S rRNA gene amplicons. We found that large-scale cultivation of G. lemaneiformis increased dissolved oxygen (DO) and pH but decreased inorganic nutrients, possibly due to nutrient uptake, photosynthesis and other physiological processes of G. lemaneiformis . These environmental changes significantly (adonis, P < 0.05) shifted the microbial community composition and structure of both water column and sediment samples in the G. lemaneiformis cultivation zone, compared to the control zone. Also, certain microbial taxa associated with seaweed, such as Arenibacter , Croceitalea , Glaciecola , Leucothrix and Maribacter were enriched at the cultivation zone. In addition, we have proposed a conceptual model to summarize the results in this study and guide future studies on relationships among seaweed processes, microbial communities and their environments. Thus, this study not only provides new insights into our understanding the effect of G. lemaneiformis cultivation on microbial communities, but also guides future studies on coastal ecosystems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pennycress ( Thlaspi arvense L.), a common winter annual weed species in North America, has received attention in recent years as a potential oilseed feedstock for biofuel production but little is known about best practices for its production as a managed crop. Therefore, the objective of this study was to determine optimum sowing date to maximize pennycress yield, oil content, and crude protein. Four field experiments with 10 unique sowing and harvest dates over 3 crop years were conducted in Morris, MN, USA. Pennycress was no-till seeded from late August to late October at a rate of 6.7 kg ha −1 . Seed yield averaged between 99 and 1109 kg ha −1 when sown in late October and early September, respectively, while oil content for the same sowing period averaged between 26.8 and 36.3%, respectively. Yield was not related to in-season environmental variables, such as cumulative precipitation, soil temperature at planting, or accumulated photohydrothermal time. However, oil content was maximized under greater precipitation ( r 2 = 0.86), warmer soil temperatures ( r 2 = 0.62) and greater photohydrothermal time when modeled at 2, 4, 6, 8, 25, 50 and 100 cm soil depths (between r 2 = 0.53 to r 2 = 0.85). Results indicate that environment conditions favoring a long maturation period increased oil accumulation in seeds. Conversely, a longer growth period reduced seed crude protein. Although pennycress protein is expected to have industrial uses, managing for yield and oil content is preferred. Therefore sowing pennycress in late August through September in the northern Corn Belt will maximize yields and oil content. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Surrogate chromatographic models to predict environmental properties. • Calculation of solute descriptors using chromatographic measurements. • Application of the solvation parameter model to characterize environmental processes. The transfer of neutral compounds between immiscible phases in chromatographic or environmental systems can be described by six solute properties (solute descriptors) using the solvation parameter model. The solute descriptors are size (McGowan's characteristic volume), V, excess molar refraction, E, dipolarity/polarizability, S, hydrogen-bond acidity and basicity, A and B, and the gas-liquid partition constant on n-hexadecane at 298.15 K, L. V and E for liquids are accessible by calculation but the other descriptors and E for solids are determined experimentally by chromatographic, liquid-liquid partition, and solubility measurements. These solute descriptors are available for several thousand compounds in the Abraham solute descriptor databases and for several hundred compounds in the WSU experimental solute descriptor database. In the first part of this review, we highlight features important in defining each descriptor, their experimental determination, compare descriptor quality for the two organized descriptor databases, and methods for estimating Abraham solute descriptors. In the second part we focus on recent applications of the solvation parameter model to characterize environmental systems and its use for the identification of surrogate chromatographic models for estimating environmental properties. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The traditional Persian house is a representative of the culture, way of life, and beliefs of the Persian people during the golden era of Persian civilization in 17th to early 20th centuries. The goal of this paper is to analyze the responsive features of this traditional house in order to provide a more organized recognition of this structure and its fundamental principles. It seems that appreciation of such key principles may help to exit the current confusion in understanding cultural-spatial qualities in contem- porary Iranian housing. In this regard, the paper will introduce the traditional Persian house, and will analyze its different aspects by using the seven criteria of Ian Bentley et al. in the book Responsive Environments (1985). This book speaks of broad, but somewhat universal concepts that can be applied across a wide range of areas such as old environments. This approach can be applied to reconsider the values of traditional environments. The criteria proposed are ‘permeability’, ‘variety’, ‘legibility’, ‘robustness’, ‘visual appropriateness’, ‘richness’ and ‘personalization’. This paper's analysis will be performed from three main viewpoints: functional-constructional, environmental, and social-cultural. The paper discussions show that the responsiveness criteria are achieved in the traditional Persian house. It seems this achie- vement results from intelligent application of fundamental, structural principles of the traditional Persian house that provides suitable ground for answering functional-constructional, environmental and social-cultural issues through common solutions in an integrated entity.

Cyanobacteria are the primary colonizers and form a dominant component of soil photosynthetic communities in biological soil crusts. They are crucial in improving soil environments, namely accumulating soil carbon and nitrogen. Many classical studies have examined cyanobacterial diversity in desert crusts, but relatively few comprehensive molecular surveys have been conducted. We used 454 pyrosequencing of 16S rRNA to investigate cyanobacterial composition and distribution on regional scales in the Gurbantunggut Desert. The relationship between cyanobacterial distribution and environmental factors was also explored. A total of 24,973 cyanobacteria partial 16S rRNA gene sequences were obtained, and 507OTUs were selected, as most OTUs had very few reads. Among these, 347 OTU sequences were of cyanobacteria origin, belonging to Oscillatoriales, Nostocales, Chroococcales, and uncultured cyanobacterium clone, respectively. Microcoleus vaginatus, Chroococcidiopsis spp. and M. steenstrupii were the dominant species in most areas of the Gurbantunggut Desert. Compared with other desert, the Gurbantunggut Desert differed in the prominence of Chroococcidiopsis spp. and lack of Pseudanabaenales. Species composition and abundance of cyanobacteria also showed distinct variations. Soil texture, precipitation, and nutrients and salt levels affected cyanobacterial distribution. Increased precipitation was helpful in improving cyanobacterial diversity. A higher content of coarse sand promoted the colonization and growth of Oscillatoriales and some phylotypes of Chroococcales. The fine-textured soil with higher nutrients and salts supported more varied populations of cyanobacteria, namely some heterocystous cyanobacteria. The results suggested that the Gurbantunggut Desert was rich in cyanobacteria and that precipitation was a primary regulating factor for cyanobacterial composition on a regional scale. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Measurements were carried out on Vegetable Oil Methyl Esters (VOME or FAME) answering the most recent specifications. The products tested are RME (Rapeseed oil Methyl Ester), ERME (Erucic Rapeseed oil Methyl Esters), SME (Sunflower oil Methyl Esters), and HOSME (High Oleic Sunflower oil Methyl Esters). They contain more than 99.5% of fatty acid mono esters. The compositions are given. VOME are not volatile and they are not easily flammable. They are not soluble in water and they are biodegradable. According to the methods implemented for the determination of the German classification of substances hazardous to waters WGK, they are not toxic on mammals and unlike diesel fuel they are not toxic on fish, daphnia, algae and bacteria. The RME is not either toxic for shrimps. According to tests on rabbits, RME and SME are not irritating for the skin and the eyes. VOME display particularly attractive environmental properties.

A comprehensive field study was conducted to evaluate the environmental performance of a roadway subgrade consisting of contaminated soil solidified/stabilized with a hydroxyapatite-based binder (termed as SPC in this study). Traditional Portland cement (PC) was used as a control binder for comparison purposes. The environmental properties including soil pH, soil leachability, and chemical speciation of target contaminants including nickel (Ni) and zinc (Zn) were investigated at 1 d, 7 d, 28 d, and 600 d after construction of the roadway subgrade. Furthermore, the field migration distances of Ni and Zn released from the subgrade to the off-site clean soil were investigated after 600-d of exposure to the atmospheric environment. The results showed that SPC solidification/stabilization was not only effective for reducing the soil leachability but improving the chemical stability of Ni and Zn in the contaminated soil. The soil pH was slightly acidic after SPC treatment. The observed maximum distance of Ni and Zn migrated from subgrade to the off-site clean soil was approximately 5 cm at 600 d. The SPC binder exhibited superior performance to PC in terms of immobilization effectiveness of Ni and Zn, soil pH, and curing time. [Display omitted] • A hydroxyapatite-based binder SPC is developed to immobilize Ni and Zn in soil. • Environmental performance of reusing SPC solidified/stabilized soil is evaluated. • Binding intensity of Ni and Zn in soil relates to their leached concentrations. • Migration distance of Ni and Zn from on-site soil to off-site soil is monitored. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ecological intensification in grasslands can be regarded as a process for increasing forage production while maintaining high levels of ecosystem functions and biodiversity. In the mountain Vercors massif, where dairy cattle farming is the main component of agriculture, how to achieve forage autonomy at farm level while sustaining environmental quality for tourism and local dairy products has recently stimulated local debate. As specific management is one of the main drivers of ecosystem functioning, we assessed the response of forage production and environmental quality at grassland scale across a wide range of management practices. We aimed to determine which components of management can be harnessed to better match forage production and environmental quality. We sampled the vegetation of 51 grasslands stratified across 13 grassland types. We assessed each grassland for agronomic and environmental properties, measuring forage production, forage quality, and indices based on the abundance of particular plant species such as timing flexibility, apiarian potential, and aromatic plants. Our results revealed an expected trade-off between forage production and environmental quality, notably by stressing the contrasts between sown and permanent grasslands. However, strong within-type variability in both production and environmental quality as well as in flexibility of timing of use suggests possible ways to improve this trade-off at grassland and farm scales. As achieving forage autonomy relies on increasing both forage production and grassland resilience, our results highlight the critical role of the ratio between sown and permanent grasslands as a major path for ecological intensification in mountain grasslands. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of DYNA - Ingeniería e Industria is the property of Publicaciones Dyna SL and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This is a review of unconventional approaches to development of long-performing standardized plastic lubricants in order to ensure reliability of modern energy-intensive and high-precision technology. Methods are presented for selection of the dispersion medium according to its molecular structure and tribochemical stability and for selection of the disperse phase according to the ability to form and preserve the elastoplastic characteristics of the lubricant film on the friction surface. The criterion for the effectiveness of additives to plastic lubricants is considered as their interaction energy with the metal surface and elements of the structural framework of the lubricant. A methodology is presented for predicting the useful life of plastic lubricants in machinery based on the thermodynamic stability of the colloidal system and its oxidation-inhibiting ability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights: [•] Possibilities to use algae oil methyl esters as fuel were examined. [•] Characteristics of algae oil methyl esters are presented. [•] Algae and rapeseed oil methyl esters were used for engine tests. [•] Engine and environmental characteristics of engine are presented. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Highlights: [•] Identification of surrogate chromatographic models for estimating environmental properties. [•] Use of chromatographic measurements for calculating descriptors. [•] Characterization of environmental processes using the solvation parameter model. [•] Estimating environmental properties using correlation models. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: This paper evaluates the behaviour and the environmental impact of a mixed recycled aggregate from non-selected construction and demolition waste (CDW) in field conditions. For this purpose, one experimental unpaved rural road with two sections was built. Sections were formed with a poor subgrade (A-6) and two structural layers: the first section consisted of a base course and a surface built using a natural aggregate and a low quality mixed recycled aggregate, respectively, and the second section, which was used as a reference, consisted of a soft crushed limestone aggregate. The materials were previously characterised in the laboratory. Control compaction ensured that the materials were correctly set in place, and the bearing capacity of each fill layer was measured. The structural performance of the pavement was determined using a falling weight deflectometer, and the changes in the international roughness index and the bearing capacity over time were studied. The results show that the non-selected CDW can be recycled using a simple treatment to create low quality recycled material with a low embodied energy that can be used as an alternative to natural aggregates in unpaved rural roads. According to the technical specifications, the total sulphur compound (SO3) and the soluble salts content can rise to 3.9% and 3.3%, respectively, without posing a sulphate leaching risk or a reduction in the quality of this type of work. This study is important for increasing recycling rates of non-selected CDW and will support sustainable development in the building sector. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: This article evaluates the behaviour and environmental impact of two recycled aggregates from selected construction and demolition waste (CDW) in field conditions. For this purpose, one experimental unpaved rural road with two sections was built in 2007. Sections were formed with an excellent subgrade (A-1-b) and two structural layers: the first section consisted of a base course and a surface built using a mixed recycled aggregate and a recycled concrete aggregate, respectively, and the second section consisted of crushed limestone aggregate as a reference. The materials were previously characterised in the laboratory. Control compaction ensured that the materials were correctly set in place, and the bearing capacity of each of the fill layers was measured. The structural performance of the pavement was determined using a Falling Weight Deflectometer, and changes over time in the International Roughness Index and the bearing capacity were studied. The results show that recycled aggregates from selected CDW can be used as an alternative to natural aggregates in unpaved rural road construction without risk of environmental impact. According to technical specifications, the soluble salt content can rise to 1.3% without reducing the quality of this type of road. This study is important for increasing recycling rates and creating a market for mixed recycled aggregates in Mediterranean countries such as Spain, which has one of the lowest recycling rates in Europe. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The environmental properties of different types of liquid biofuels are examined: bioalcohols, biodiesel, and others. They are compared with the same properties of petroleum fuels. It is shown that the properties of biofuels differ considerably from those of petroleum fuels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, environmentally key properties including aqueous solubilities ( SW), vapor pressures ( VP), sorption coefficients ( KOC), octanol–water ( KOW), octanol–air ( KOA) and air–water ( KAW) partition coefficients of 53 phthalates are studied by the quantitative structure-property relationship models by means of previously proposed Lu index. Reliable models are obtained to estimate Log SW, solubility in air (Log SA), Log KOC and Log KOW for phthalates with the correlation coefficients of estimations ( R) being 0.9869, 0.9461, 0.8880 and 0.9836, and the standard errors being 0.44, 0.27, 0.52 and 0.40, respectively. The predictive ability of the constructed models is demonstrated by the correlation coefficients ( RCV) in the leave-one-out cross validation procedures being 0.9709, 0.9218, 0.8089 and 0.9784, and the corresponding standard errors ( sCV) being 0.47, 0.34, 0.67 and 0.47, respectively. The properties of KAO and KAW for the phthalates are calculated by the predicted SW, SA, and KOW values. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This review aims to present and discuss the mechanical and environmental properties of two different type of recycled aggregates obtain from construction and demolition waste (CDW): (1) Recycled Concrete Aggregates (RCA) and (2) Mixed Recycled Aggregates (MRA). In addition, the properties of the concrete in the fresh (workability, water/cement ratio) and hardened state (mechanical and durability properties), as well as the environmental impact of the concrete produced with the two types of recycled aggregates, are presented and discussed. Due to the heterogeneous composition of recycled aggregates, the concrete properties can be significantly variable. The systematic review concerns scientific papers published from 2010 to 2020 and it shows the importance of the selection process in order to obtain high quality CDW as well as of the type of recycled aggregates on concrete properties. In particular, recycled concrete aggregates show a better quality and homogeneity than mixed recycled aggregates that make them more suitable for concrete. This work presents an overview on the influence of recycled aggregate quality on the physical, mechanical and environmental properties of concrete. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Environmental factors influence the accuracy in stem volume retrieval using European Remote Sensing Satellite (ERS) tandem synthetic aperture radar (SAR) interferometry. Some forest stands are more sensitive than others to heterogeneity of environmental properties, forest properties, and noise. It is shown that the consistency of coherence observations between different image pairs or the consistency of the estimated stem volume can be used to sort forest stands according to increasing errors in stem volume estimates associated with varying forest properties. Fifteen ERS tandem pairs were used to determine the relative root mean square error (RMSE) of stem volume estimated from C-band SAR interferometry. The test site, Tuusula in Finland, contains 210 forest stands with stem volumes up to 539 m3/ha. RMSE varies between 17% and 63% depending on number and type of stands included in the retrieval accuracy analysis. The more homogeneous forest stands with larger area and higher stem volumes of spruce and pine are those with highest retrieval accuracy [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

We have previously demonstrated intra- and extra-cellular factors that govern somatic evolution of the malignant phenotype can be modeled through evolutionary game theory, a mathematical approach that analyzes phenotypic adaptation to in-vivo environmental selection forces. Here we examine the global evolutionary dynamics that control evolutionary dynamics explicitly addressing conflicting data and hypothesis regarding the relative importance of the mutator phenotype and microenvironment controls. We find evolution of invasive cancer follows a biphasic pattern. The first phase occurs within normal tissue, which possesses a remarkable adaptive landscape that permits non-competitive coexistence of multiple cellular populations but renders it vulnerable to invasion. When random genetic mutations produce a fitter phenotype, self-limited clonal expansion is observed — equivalent to a polyp or nevus. This step corresponds to tumor initiation in classical skin carcinogenesis experiments because the mutant population deforms the adaptive landscape resulting in the emergence of unoccupied fitness peaks — a premalignant configuration because, over time, extant cellular populations will tend to evolve toward available fitness maxima forming an invasive cancer. We demonstrate that this phase is governed by intracellular processes, such as the mutation rate, that promote phenotypic diversity and environmental factors that control cellular selection and population growth. These results provide an integrative model of carcinogenesis that incorporates cell-centric approaches such as the mutator phenotype hypothesis with the critical role of the environmental demonstrated by Bissell and others. The biphasic dynamics of carcinogenesis give a quantitative framework of understanding for the empirically observed initiation and promotion/progression stages in skin carcinogenesis experimental models. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The results of developing, manufacturing, and testing SAE 15W-40 CF-4/SG oils in the D-245 engine are reported. Due to the decrease in volatility and optimization of the composition, consumption of oil to loss in burning was reduced by 32% and the environmental characteristics improved correspondingly. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A natural ruffle TiO2, which displays photocatalysis on degrading halohydrocarbon pollutants, was reported. The rutile contains up to 1.22% V2O5 (weight percent). Substitutions of Ti by V, as well as Fe, Cu and Zn, result in lattice distortions and defects. Grinding, heating and quenching modify the surface characteristics of rutile, and consequently increase its photoactivity. It is found that the heating and quenching treatments enhance visible-light absorption of ruffle, especially at 1000 and 1100 °C. Ground rutile is effective to degrade tetrachloroethylene and trichloroethylene. While, heating at 1000 °C, and quenching at 1000 and 1100 °C distinctly improve degradation rate of samples. The special properties of the natural rutile have particular capabilities in photocatalytic oxidation, especially in degradation of halohydrocarbons. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The environmental degradation behaviour of flax fibres and their polymer composites are explored. New upgraded Duralin flax fibres, which have been treated by a novel treatment process for improved moisture and rot sensitivity were studied. Environmental studies showed that these upgraded Duralin flax fibres absorb less moisture than untreated Green flax fibres, whereas the mechanical properties of the treated fibres were retained, if not improved. The effect of this novel flax fibre treatment on the environmental behaviour of natural-fibre-mat-reinforced thermoplastics (NMTs) is investigated by monitoring the moisture absorption and swelling, and measuring the residual mechanical properties of the flax/polypropylene composites at different moisture levels. The moisture absorption and swelling of the upgraded flax fibre composites is approximately 30% lower than that of composites based on Green flax fibres. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]