Search

The development of health services of hospitals in developing countries has led to a significant increase in the production of infectious waste, which has important economic and environmental consequences. Therefore, reducing pollutant leakage caused by disinfection and reducing infectious waste management costs are important in achieving sustainable development goals in hospital management. In this study, the centralized and decentralized patterns of infectious waste management were studied in three hospitals in Behbahan, Iran. Economic analysis was done based on the financial model. Phthalate emission from disinfection equipment was measured for investigating the level of exposure to the pollutant in the studied patterns. The results showed that the cost of waste transportation for studied hospitals in the centralized patterns increased by 12.1 %. However, reductions in disinfection and transfer costs up to 32.4 % were available by increasing the segregation ratio of infectious waste. The average emission of phthalates from disinfection equipment in the studied hospitals was 0.260 ng/kg. But emission of phthalate types was not the same, so that the emission of BEHP, IBP, and DBP was 35.97, 4.90, and 1.55 μg/m3, respectively. Considering the hospital waste reduction plan and increasing the segregation ratio to reduce the costs of the hospital led to economic justification of the centralized pattern of infectious waste management as a safe option.

Health care workers employed operating room in hospital and health centers are unavoidably exposed to inhaling toxic gases, including isoflurane and sevoflurane. Chronic contact with these gases increases the risk of spontaneous abortion, congenital anomalies and cancers. Risk assessment is an important tool in predicting the possible risk to personnel's health. Therefore, this study was conducted with the aim of determining the concentration of isoflurane and sevoflurane gas in the air of the operating room and estimating the non-carcinogenic risk caused by them. In this descriptive-cross-sectional study, according to the occupational method (OSHA 103), 23 samples (isoflurane and sevoflurane) were collected in the air of operating rooms of four selected hospitals in Ahvaz city by using SKC sampling pumps and sorbent tube (Anasorb 747). The samples were determined by used to gas chromatography with a flame ionization detector (GC/FID). Statistical analysis, including the Kruskal-Wallis test, was used to compare the average concentration of anesthetic gases, and the one-sample t-test was used to compare the average with the standard level. In all analyses, the significance level was 0.05, which was performed by SPSS version 22 software. Result of this study showed that the average concentration of isoflurane in private and general hospitals were 23.636 and 17.575 ppm, respectively. Also, the average level of sevoflurane were 1.58 and 7.804 ppm. According to the results the mean amount of anesthetic gases was within the range recommended by Iran's Occupational and Environmental Health Center and the permissible threshold limit provided by ACGIH. In addition, non-cancer risks from occupational exposure to isoflurane and sevoflurane in selected private and general hospitals were acceptable (HQ < 1). Although the results show that overall occupational exposure to anesthetic gases is less than acceptable but long-term exposure to anesthetic gases may endanger the health of operating room staffs. Therefore, it is recommended to implement some technical controls, including regular inspection of ventilation systems, the use of advanced ventilation systems with high cleaning power, continuous control of anesthesia devices in terms of leakage, and periodic training of related staff.

Background/objectives: Occupational exposure of employees to residual anesthetic gases in the operating room without a proper ventilation system can adversely affect their health. The purpose of this study was to assessment the environmental factors and monitoring the concentration of anesthetic gases in the operating rooms. Methods: Twenty-three operating rooms were examined. Simultaneously with each sampling, the temperature and humidity were measured with a moisture meter, a psychrometer, IR thermometer (Triplett MS475). The data was then analyzed using the Mann-Whitney and Pearson correlation tests. Results: The findings showed that the average concentration of isoflurane (P-value = 0.036) and sevoflurane (P-value = 0.049) were significantly higher in hospitals without ventilation system. Also, result of this study showed that the average level of isoflurane and sevoflurane (P-value = 0.315 and P-value = 0.120), there was no significant relationship in hospitals without cooler than hospitals with cooler system.Based on result this study, there was not found significant relationship between isoflurane and humidity (P-value = 0.586), isoflurane and temperature (P-value = 0.890), sevoflurane and humidity (P-value = 0.692), and sevoflurane and temperature (P-value = 0.199). Conclusion: According to the results, the most important ways to reduce adverse health effects and reduce occupational exposure levels among employees and patients including the use of modern equipment, improvement of the operating room ventilation system, the use of a cleaning system closes to the exit pipe of the anesthesia machine, employee training, control of environmental factors (temperature and humidity), and frequent monitoring of anesthetic gases.

Background: This study examined the removal of ciprofloxacin (CIP), which is a very widely used antibiotic, from an aqueous medium by applying AgI/Ag2O photocatalyst under visible light radiation. Methods: AgI/Ag2O was synthesized conveniently by applying a two-stage precipitation method. The synthesized compound was characterized by X-ray powder diffraction (XRD), FE- field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), energy dispersive x-ray (EDX), and UV-Vis spectrophotometry. Different parameters including initial pH of the solution, initial CIP concentration, reaction kinetics, and catalyst reusability were investigated. Results: Concurrent use of AgI and Ag2O caused improved photocatalytic properties in the presence of UV light. The pH and initial concentration of CIP affected the process efficiency; 95% efficiency was achieved within 100 min at pH 9. Furthermore, the process efficiency was still maintained over 90% after four consecutive cycles. Conclusion: The photocatalytic degradation process using AgI/Ag2O nanocomposite under visible light radiation is a suitable method for removing CIP from aqueous media due to its high efficiency and stability.

Background: The emergence and spread of SARS-CoV-2 has increased environmental disinfectant usage to reduce the transmission of this virus. Ethanol 70%-90% and 5% sodium hypochlorite have the highest consumption for disinfection of various environmental surfaces during the COVID-19 pandemic. Dental unit waterlines (DUWLs) are more susceptible to microbial contamination due to their particular structure. This study aimed to investigate the effect of increasing the use of disinfectants during the COVID-19 pandemic on the bacterial contamination of DUWLs. Methods: During November (before the COVID-19 pandemic) and December (during the COVID-19 pandemic), a questionnaire was used to assess the frequency of disinfection of unit surfaces and other environmental surfaces and the type of disinfectants used. The water samples were collected from different parts of DUWLs. The gram staining method followed by the biochemical method was used to identify the desired bacteria. Results: The results showed that the frequency of disinfection of dental units increased 8 times in December compared to November. There is a significant inverse relationship between the frequency of disinfection of dental units surfaces and the bacterial contamination of DUWLs. Conclusion: The microbial load in different parts of the DUWLs was less than 200 CFU/mL. The American Dental Association (ADA) recommended and indicated the allowable microbial concentration and the appropriate quality and water used in these units.

Several recent studies have focused on leaching pesticides from agricultural soils into surface and groundwater resources during irrigation. As a result, information about herbicide residues in water was necessary for conserving related resources. This study provided an overview of monitoring herbicides in water resources worldwide. In this scoping review, five databases were searched for publications (1990 to April 2021), including Scopus, PubMed/Medline, Cochrane library, Embase, and Web of Science. Among the 394 identified articles, 17 papers were selected for inclusion. Most of these studies have been conducted in regions with low herbicide concentrations, including Spain, Greece, Canada, Brazil, Hungary, Malawi, Portugal, Lesotho, Germany, Serbia, and the USA. The high-level alachlor, metolachlor, atrazine, metribuzin, and simazine herbicides in groundwater were detected in Portugal (0.4-13μg/L). An overview of studies demonstrated that herbicides are widely used in water resources, and surface waters are more contaminated than groundwaters.

The study investigated the effects of pre-ozonation on the parameters such as turbidity, color, chlorophyll a and TOC on a pilot scale. The investigation results indicate that the amount of required ozone to remove TOC, color and turbidity depends on the quality of inlet water, and the efficiency of water ozonation depends on the process factors such as ozone dose, temperature, pH and ozone-water contact time. The study likewise shows that the lower amount of turbidity, TOC, temperature and higher alkaline pH of sample water boost the ozonation effect on removing the variables in question. The results also demonstrate a direct relationship between pH, ozone dosage and contact time, as well as an indirect relationship between temprerature and the removal of parameters.

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is an infectious disease caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). In this systematic review, five databases were searched (Scopus, PubMed-/Medline, Cochrane library, Embase, and Web of Science) for publications between 2019 to 12 February 2021. From 575 articles identified, seven papers were selected for inclusion. In the present paper, corona transmission routes from three environments of water, wastewater and air were considered. The most important transmission route of COVID-19 is through the air, which takes place from the following two routes: respiration and contact. Respiratory drops are caused by coughing and sneezing. Anyone who comes in close contact with someone having COVID-19 symptoms (sneezing, coughing, etc.) is potentially at risk for droplets. In this paper, corona transmission pathways from water, wastewater, and air in three environments were investigated. The results showed that the virus is transmitted through the air and its transmission through water and wastewater has not been proven. While the virus may survive in drinking water, there is no evidence that human coronavirus is present in surface and groundwater sources, or transmitted through contaminated drinking water. There is also no evidence of SARS-CoV-2 transmission through the sewage system, with or without wastewater treatment. Detection of this virus is very effective in determining the necessary and timely strategies to prevent further transmission of virus, and help to break the chain of COVID-19 transmission through water and wastewater.

Background: Natural organic matters such as humic acid react with chlorine and produce disinfection by products such as trihalomethanes that are carcinogenic. In this study, shellfish ash was used as a novel adsorbent for removal of humic acid. Methods: The present study was performed under various laboratory conditions including pH, adsorbent dose, contact time, and initial concentration of humic acid. Residual concentrations of humic acid in the samples were determined by a UV-Vis spectrophotometer at 254 nm wavelength. Artificial neural network (ANN) modeling studies were also performed. Results: Elemental analysis showed that the shellfish ash was 98% pure calcium. It was indicated that the maximum adsorption capacity was achieved in acidic conditions (pH = 3) and pHzpc was found to be 10.3. The adsorption data followed the Langmuir model (R2 > 0.9). The adsorption of humic acid followed the pseudo-second-order kinetic (R2 = 0.999). ANN modeling also provided the accurate prediction of humic acid adsorption for testing data (R2 = 0.989). Conclusion: According to the results, shellfish ash is recommended as an effective biosorbent for removal of organic pollutants such as humic acid.

Background: Biodegradation of hydrocarbon compounds is a great environmental concern due to their toxic nature and ubiquitous occurrence. In this study, biodegradation potential of oily soils was investigated in an oil field using indigenous bacterial consortium. Methods: The bacterial strains present in the contaminated and non-contaminated soils were identified via DNA extraction using 16S rDNA gene sequencing during six months. Furthermore, total petroleum hydrocarbons (TPH) were removed from oil-contaminated soils. The TPH values were determined using a gas chromatograph equipped with a flame ionization detector (GC-FID). Results: The bacterial consortium identified in oil-contaminated soils (case) belonged to the families Halomonadaceae (91.5%) and Bacillaceae (8.5%), which was significantly different from those identified in non-contaminated soils (control) belonging to the families Enterobacteriaceae (84.6%), Paenibacillaceae (6%), and Bacillaceae (9.4%). It was revealed that the diversity of bacterial strains was less in oil-contaminated soils and varied significantly between case and control samples. Indigenous bacterial consortium was used in oil-contaminated soils without need for amplification of heterogeneous bacteria and the results showed that the identified bacterial strains could be introduced as a sufficient consortium for biodegradation of oil-contaminated soils with similar texture, which is one of the innovative aspects of this research. Conclusion: An oil-contaminated soil sample with TPH concentration of 1640 mg/kg was subjected to bioremediation during 6 months using indigenous bacterial consortium and a TPH removal efficiency of 28.1% was obtained.

Background: Phenanthrene (PHE) is a polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) with crystalline structure of C14H10, which was produced from incomplete combustion of hydrocarbons and fossil fuels and can cause harmful biological effects. Bioremediation using halophilic bacteria is payed attention over chemical methods due to considerable benefits. Methods: In the present study, a halo-tolerant bacterium Bacillus kochii strain AHV-KH14 was isolated from municipal compost, and used for the bioremediation of PHE from the contaminated soil. The effects of operational parameters including soil/water ratio, initial inoculum size, PHE concentration, and salinity on the bioremediation performance were investigated. Results: A biodegradation efficiency of about to 98% was obtained for PHE concentration of 50 mg/kg and salinity level of 1.5%. By increasing salinity content PHE concentration, PHE biodegradation rate decreased significantly. It was found that the bioremediation efficiency decreased with increasing PHE concentration. It was also revealed that for the unwashed soil sample, cumulative concentrations of different hydrocarbons played an important role in decreasing the efficiency of bioremediation. Conclusion: A natural hydrocarbon-contaminated soil sample with total petroleum hydrocarbon (TPH) concentration of 2350 mg/kg was subjected to bioremediation using the selected conditions of operational parameters, and a biodegradation rate of 17.7% was obtained.

Background and objectives: The Physical, chemical and biological parameters one of the most important factors determining the quality of drinking water. The overall purpose of this project is to investigate how the quality of water entering the plant in changing the water-color and creating the foams in different units of water purification. Methods: This study is a case study and in real scale on the raw water inlet to the Koohsabz drinking water treatment plant has been done. The study was conducted over a period of 6 months (February 2016 to July 2017). In the first stage, the raw water quality was assessed according to standard methods. In the second step, the effect of each of the parameters on the color and foam formation in the water treatment process units and the mechanism of effects have been examined. Results: Average changes in temperature, turbidity, the color of the water entering the plant during the study period were 15.8oC, 6NTU, and 6TCU respectively and pH ranges from 6.9 to 8.4. Mean change of EC, TOC and DOC respectively is; 765 μS / cm, 5.8mg /l and 3.53mg /l. The average change UV254 and SUVA were 0.178 l / m and 5.856 L/ mg, respectively. Also, the mean changes of humic acid, surfactant, and chlorophyll a in the input raw water were 0.24, 0.05 mg / l and 2.4 μg/m2, respectively. Conclusion: Investigations showed that the water quality parameters of water entering the treatment plant are effective in creating color and foam in water treatment process units.

Background: The aim of this study was to determine the concentrations of lead (Pb) and cadmium (Cd) in lipstick and eye pencil cosmetics of different grades in the markets of Iran. Methods: This descriptive study was conducted in Ahvaz city in 2018. Sixty different samples of lipstick and eye pencil of three common brands were selected and analyzed using the Inductively Coupled Plasma Atomic Emission Spectroscopy (ICP-OES) and the results were compared with standard values recommended by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The analysis of lipsticks was based on producer country and colors and producer country only for eye pencil. Results: The mean concentrations of Pb and Cd were 41.86 and 53.42 μg/g, respectively. Concentrations of lead were higher than those of Cd in lipsticks, while for eye pencil, Cd showed higher concentrations. The overall results indicated that in all brands and colors of lipsticks, only 33% of the samples had Pb content less than the FDA limit, and among lipstick samples, 44% had Cd concentration less than the FDA limit of 3 μg/g, however, in 100% of the eye pencil samples, the concentration of Cd was higher than the recommended value of 3 μg/g. Conclusion: Given the health risks of exposure to heavy metals and in order to increase community awareness about the harmful effects of cosmetics, it is necessary to monitor the concentration of these toxic elements in these products and encourage the manufactures to meet the FDA standards.

In drinking water treatments, for coagulation and sedimentation of suspended particles, several coagulants are used such as Alum, PAC and ferric chloride. In spite of their positive effect on turbidity removal, these chemicals cause some problems like corrosion and harmful by-products which result in bad effects on human and environmental health. Therefore, finding and using better and more effective materials without such adverse effects is a necessity. The aim of this research was to study the effect of chemically synthetized sodium ferrate (S.F.) in liquid state for the turbidity removal from Zayandehrud River in two conditions: normal turbidity (less than 100 NTU) and high turbidity (more than 900NTU). This research was performed in four states of 30×60, 40×60, 60×60, and 30×40; in each state, one of the water independent variables effective on water turbidity was changed. These four states were S.F. dosing rate, gentile mixing speed, rapid mixing time and pH. For the experiment design, analysis and optimization of independent variables effective on turbidity removal were used. In addition, the surface response method (RSM-D-Optimal) plus Design Expert-v10 optimization software were used for this study. Finally, in this research, according to the standard methods, the residual total Fe (due to sodium ferrate) was checked in the research in order to ensure that its value was in the allowable range for drinking water. The results showed optimum conditions as: pH of 8.5 and gentle mixing oscillating speed of 60rpm for 7min, 50rpm for 7min and 40rpm for 6min, (instead of 40rpm constant speed for 20min) and rapid mixing time of 30s with 120rpm (instead of 60s, which was conventional in Esfahan water treatment plant). In addition, the results showed that by using only 1.54mg/L of S.F. in the above-mentioned optimum condition, the water turbidity removal efficiencies were 95.17% and 99.07% for normal and high turbidity states, respectively. A comparison was made in this research between using S.F. and poly aluminum chloride (PAC) for both normal and high turbidity. The results showed the better effect of S.F. than PAC. The results also showed that the residual total Fe was in the allowable range before and after the filter (because of the reactivity of ferrate with Fe). From the results of this research, it can be concluded that using S.F. has a positive effect, technically and economically, on water turbidity removal (better effect than conventional chemicals) in both normal and high turbidity. Moreover, the results showed that residual total Fe remains in the allowable range.

Background: Ozone can be used as a single technology or in combination with other processes to improve the coagulation- flocculation or biodegradability in order to remove pollutants in natural water treatment. Methods: In this study, the effects of pre-ozonation with coagulant substances on the quality parameters of drinking water were investigated using humic acid, kaolin, clay, and green algae in a pilot scale. This study was conducted under laboratory conditions (at both acidic and alkaline pH in different dosages of ozone and coagulant at ozone contact time with simulated water sample (5-20 minutes) in different scenarios).Results: The highest removal efficiency of parameters in the state of pre-ozonation alone and pre-ozonation with a coagulant was observed at contact time of 20 minutes, ozone dosage of 5 g/h, coagulant dosage of 25 mg/L, at alkaline pH along with a decrease in temperature. So that, the average removal rate of turbidity, total organic carbon (TOC), color, and chlorophyll a in contact time of 20 minutes was 76.9%, 52.8%, 66.6%, and 85%, respectively. However, compared to ozonation under similar conditions, the reduction in turbidity, TOC, color, and chlorophyll a was 36.13%, 24.4%, 32.13%, and 79.6%, respectively. Also, it was revealed that pre-ozonation with coagulant could effectively improve the removal of parameters.Conclusion: However, since pre-ozonation can be effectively used to improve the coagulation efficacy in the drinking water treatment, the pre-ozonation combined with coagulation is proposed as an alternative to conventional coagulation to improve the process of drinking water treatment plant.

The presence of chlorinated aromatic pollutants like 4- chlorophenol (4CP), even at low concentrations, in the wastewater should be controlled urgently, because of their high toxicity, carcinogenic potential and poor biodegradability. This dataset reveals the effectiveness of an advanced oxidation process (AOP) for attenuating of 4 CP. The AOP of UV/ZnO/persulfate and the influence of various parameters like pH, persulfate dosage and ZnO dosage were studied and the optimum removal conditions could be easily implied by readerships. The efficiency of > 90% was attained for degrading of 4CP by UV/ZnO/persulfate system at the experimental conditions of pH of 7, persulfate dosage of 11 mg/L, 4CP concentration of 10 mg/L, and ZnO dosage of 1 g/L. The data had a good agreement with pseudo first-order kinetic model. Thus, the UV/ZnO/persulfate system is an efficient method for decreasing 4CP from aqueous solution. Keywords: Photo-catalysis, Persulfate, Degradation, 4- chlorophenol, Pseudo first-order kinetic

Dyes are one of the most important existing pollutants in textile industrial wastewater. These compounds are often toxic, carcinogenic, and mutagenic to living organisms, chemically and photochemically stable, and non-biodegradable. Acid red 18 is one of the azo dyes that are currently used in the textile industries. Photocatalytic degradation offers a great potential as an advanced oxidation process, in this study photocatalytic degradation of Acid red 18 by using BiOI/ZnO nanocomposite was evaluated under visible light irradiation. The influence of most essential parameters such as pH and BiOI/ZnO dosage were studied for optimum conditions. The dye removal efficiency was 85.1% at optimum experimental conditions of pH of 7, and BiOI/ZnO dosage of 1.5 g/L. The data had a good agreement with pseudo first-order kinetic model. Thus, the BiOI/ZnO/UV is an efficient process for dye degradation. Keywords: Photodegradation, Nanocomposite, BiOI/ZnO, Degradation, Dye, Acid red 18

Background and purpose: Contamination of food materials such as rice to mycotoxins (aflatoxin B1 and Ochratoxin A) is a major health concern. This causes more concerns especially in countries that rice is the main food. Nephrotoxic, immunotoxic, mutagenic, teratogenic, and carcinogenic effects of such mycotoxins to human are reported by WHO and EPA. The main objective of current study was to determine the contamination of rice produced in Kohgiluyeh and boyer Ahmad and Khuzestan provinces to aflatoxin B1 and Ochratoxin A. Materials and methods: In a cross-sectional study, 85 samples were randomly collected from rice farms in Basht, Yasuj, Gachsaran and Dena in Kohgiluyeh and Boyer Ahmad province and Ramhormoz in Khuzestan province. Contaminations to Aflatoxin B1 and Ochratoxin A were quantified using ELISA method and data was statistically analyzed by SPSS V18. Results: The concentration of aflatoxin B1 was less than the limits specified by the Iran National standard and the :union: of Europe standard value in 80.58% of the samples. Also, the levels of Ochratoxin A in 100% of the samples were less than standard limits. The average concentrations of aflatoxin B1 and Ochratoxin were 4.70 ng/g and 2.02 ng/g in all samples, respectively. In addition, there was a positive correlation between Aflatoxin B1 and temperature and humidity P=0.001. Conclusion: This research showed a potential contamination to fungi and its toxins in rice. Increase in temperature and humidity directly increased aflatoxin B1 levels.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficiency of nano-sized cellulose obtained from rice husk for Cr(VI) adsorption. The effect of operational parameters including initial pH (3â10), contact time (0â120 min), adsorbent dosage (0.2â1.5 g/L), and initial Cr(VI) concentration (5â50 mg/L) were investigated according to one factor at time method. The results showed, in pH=6, contact time=100 min, adsorbent dose=1.5 g/L and 30 mg/L initial chromium concentration, the adsorption efficiency reached to 92.99%. Also Langmuir isotherm with (R2=0.998 at 303 °K) and pseudo-first-order kinetic model (R2=0.993) were the best models for describing the Cr(VI) adsorption reactions. The negative values of ÎGâ and positive value of ÎHâ showed that, the Cr(VI) adsorption on NCFs was endothermic and spontaneously process. Therefore, it can be concluded that the application this method is recommended for removing Cr(VI) from aqueous solutions. Keywords: Rice husk, Nano-sized cellulose, Cr(VI), Adsorption, Water pollution

Soil pollution by heavy metals is a major concern in agricultural area. Potential impact of heavy metals in agricultural soil on human health by accumulating in food chain demonstrated elsewhere.In this regard Mian-Ab plain as a major agricultural site of Khuzestan province considered for Arsenic, cadmium and lead concentration as the main potential toxic pollutants in soil. 50 topsoil samples were collected and analyzed by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). Also Contamination level of selected heavy metals in Mian-Ab Plain, was assessed by single factor contaminant index (PI) and pollution load index (PLI). Results show mean concentration of arsenic, cadmium and lead were 2.52, 0.30 and 7.21 mg kgâ1. Base on PLI results 12 point (24%) of the studied area show moderately polluted and 38 point (76%) show unpolluted area. Keywords: Soil pollution, Pollution load index, Heavy metals, Mian-Ab plain

Soil is an important component of life cycle affecting agriculture and food crops. Quality of soil resources is defined according to their potential impact on human health by exposure of harmful constituents through the food chain. Heavy metals especially As, Pb and Cd are among the most hazardous elements which could be released to the top soil through different wastewaters, fertilizers, herbicides and etc. In this research Aghili plain in Khuzestan province, Iran was selected as a total of 54 samples were prepared based on a systematic gridding procedure. Selected heavy metals concentrations were analyzed by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) and then zoning was performed using kriging method. Pollution level was assessed through single factor indices and pollution load index. A separate map dealing with each heavy metal was prepared to present the distribution of heavy metal in Aghili plain. In all samples the heavy metals concentrations were followed the bellow trend: Pb>As>Cd. Furthermore, based on the PLI, all stations were categorized as moderately to highly polluted sites (1

Saline municipal wastewater treatment is a challenging environmental issue in coastal cities, due to the discharge of saline water into the sewers. The present research article focuses on the phytoremediation of high saline municipal wastewater by Ruppia maritime, a widespread plant which can be found in saline medium such as traditional fish ponds, estuaries, tidal flats, salt pans, coastal paddy fields, coastal lagoons, marsh pools, and mangrove salt marshes in Khuzestan province, Iran. The experimental data was obtained using a pilot plant constructed in Chobeineh wastewater treatment plant in Ahvaz city, fed by activated sludge effluent in 3 levels of electrical conductivity (EC) (10, 15, 20 ms cm−1), during 45 days of the experiment. Chemical oxygen demand (COD), total nitrogen (TN), total phosphorus (TP) and total suspended solids (TSS) were daily monitored in blank and pilot study. The COD removal decreased from 83.26% to 72.39% by increasing the EC level from 10 to 20 ms cm−1, respectively. The experimental data will practically be an appropriate source of information for environmental engineers to design a natural treatment scenario for saline wastewater treatment. Keywords: Natural wastewater treatment, Ruppia maritima, Saline wastewater, Municipal wastewater

In this work, we present the result of an electric coagulation process with iron and aluminum electrodes for removal of chemical and biological oxygen demand (COD and BOD) from grey water in different car washes of Ahvaz, Iran. Nowadays, one of the important dangerous that can contaminate water resources for drinking, agriculture and industrial is Car wash effluent [1,2]. In this study, initial COD and BOD concentration, pH of the solution, voltage power and reaction time was investigated. The concentration level of remaining COD and BOD in samples was measured, using DR/5000 UV–vis HACH spectrophotometer [3,4]. The effects of contact time, initial pH, electrical potential and voltage data on removal of COD and BOD were presented. Statistical analysis of the data was carried out using Special Package for Social Sciences (SPSS 16).

Oil drill cuttings are challenging wastes in oil sites especially in Khuzestan province, a major oil producing region in Iran. As co- composting is a simple and eco- friendly technique for bioremediation of oil base drill cutting, this data article designed to describe co- composting of oil base drill cutting with cow manure. The data suggest that with optimized mixture of cow manure/oily drill wastes (here, 20:1) could engender more effective treatment of the wastes (with final total petroleum hydrocarbon of 0.01 g/Kg). The data will be informative for oil drilling companies and environmental agencies for choosing it as a practical bioremediation process of soil/wastes polluted by petroleum hydrocarbons.

Since global warming due to greenhouse gas emissions is no respecter of geographical boundaries of countries, concerted mitigation activities such as Clean Development Mechanism (CDM), are suitable. In this mechanism, some developed countries can gain certified emission reduction credits from emission reduction actions undertaken in developing countries. Thus, the data of greenhouse gas emissions in developing countries would be informative for implementing of CDM. Herein, the data of greenhouse gas emissions of Bandar Imam Petrochemical Complex, one of the biggest petrochemical companies in the Middle East region is presented. The data was acquired using emission factor method and self-presented raw information of the Bandar Imam Petrochemical Complex. Overall, the data will be interesting for environmentalists, non-governmental organization (NGO), and developed countries to perform CDM. Keywords: Greenhouse gas emissions, Emission factor, Petrochemical, Clean Development Mechanism, Bandar Imam Petrochemical Complex

Background: The biogases are the mixture of gases produced through the microbial decomposition of organic waste which are amply observed in the landfills. The main purpose of this study was to estimate the emission rates of landfill gases such as carbon dioxide, methane and non-methane organic compounds (NMOCs) in the solid waste landfill of Rodan city in Hormozgan province. Methods: All the necessary information such as population, geographic and climate of Rodan city were collected. Solid waste analysis was then conducted. Afterward, the LandGEM software is used in this study for the purpose of estimation of total biogas, methane, carbon dioxide and NMOCs emission from Rodan’s landfill. Results: The analysis of results showed that only 24.18% of the produced waste in this city is perishable. The calculations indicate that the peak of biogas production which is equal to 420 tons per year would be achieved in the year 2019. The production rates of carbon dioxide and methane in the same year would be equal to 308 and 112 tons per year respectively. The pollutants transmittance calculations in the vicinity of the landfill revealed that the maximum pollutant concentration is within the maximum distance of 200 m. Conclusion: The results obtained in this study could be used for the purpose of design and installation of extraction or incineration equipment in the landfill of Rodan.

Background: PAHs was producted from incomplete combustion of fossil fuels and due to nature of publishing, it was categorized as the soil and beaches pollutant. These compounds are considered in pollutants which have priority, carcinogenic and certain mutagenic. The main difficulty of clearing contaminated areas to PAHs is the nature of highly water repellent of these pollutants and a strong attraction to the soil texture. The main objective of this current study was to determine the efficiency of phenanthrene removal from contaminated soil and beaches by using biosurfactant produced by a bacterium isolated from Persian Gulf. Materials & Methods: with primary screening, a Bacillus sp strain with surfactin production capability was isolated and purified in laboratory. A mixed bacterial consortium isolated which was consists of three bacterial species with of capable of metabolism of phenanthrene from Khark contaminated beaches and was used as a microbial seed. The synthetic soil samples with initial phenanthrene concentration of 100 mg/kg and also natural contaminated samples were subjected to bioremediation during 9 weeks. Results: The phenanthrene removal efficiency in the samples containing biosurfactants and with artificial and natural pollution were 82% and 39% respectively. The removal efficiency for samples without biosurfactant was 11%. Conclusion: The bioremediation process is considered an efficient, eco-friendly and operational for remediation of beache and soil polluted by petroleum hydrocarbons by using bacterial biosurfactant.

Background: Mature landfill leachate is a complicated mixture which is resistant to biological treatment processes. The treatment of mature landfill leachate by struvite precipitation and Fenton oxidation was the main objective of the current research. Methods: Struvite with the phosphate/ammonia/magnesium molar ratio of 1/1/1.05 was considered during all experiments. Five initial pHs of 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7, four different H2O2/Fe mass ratios of 50, 100, 200, and 400, and reaction times of 20, 40, 80, 120, and 160 minutes were examined for the Fenton oxidation process. Results: A leachate sample with average chemical oxygen demand (COD), BOD5, and NH4 concentrations of 7350, 2220, and 2280 mg L-1, respectively, and a BOD5/COD ratio of 0.3 was introduced to the chemical precipitation unit. An NH4 removal efficiency of 87% was obtained at pH 8.5 for struvite precipitation. Under optimum conditions of Fenton oxidation, including pH 3, an H2O2/Fe2+ mass ratio of 200, and a reaction time of 160 min, more than 95% COD and BOD5 removal was observed. Conclusion: Struvite precipitation and Fenton oxidation are reliable and efficient alternatives for mature landfill treatment.

Titanium dioxide nanoparticles were immobilized on granular activated carbon (GAC) as a porous and low-density support for photocatalytic degradation of furfural. The TiO2/GAC composite was synthetized using the simple sol-gel method and fully characterized. The effects of the operational parameters of furfural concentration (200–700 mg/L), initial pH (2–12), TiO2/GAC composite dosage (1–3.5 g/L), and irradiation time (20–120 min) were studied. The synthetized TiO2/GAC composite exhibited a total pore volume of 0.13 cm3/g and specific surface area of 35.91 m2/g. Removal efficiency of up to 95% was observed at initial pH of 10, TiO2/GAC dosage of 2.5 g/L, irradiation time of 80 min, and initial furfural concentration of 500 mg/L. The photocatalyst could be reused at least four consecutive times with a mere 2% decrease in furfural removal efficiency. Mineralization efficiency of 94% was obtained within 80 min. Pseudo-first-order kinetics best fit the photocatalytic degradation of furfural under experimental conditions.

In this study, dried waste activated sludge from a municipal wastewater treatment plant was used for Cd (II) ion adsorption with and without pre-treatment. Waste activated sludge was treated with 1% Hydrogen peroxide. Cd (II) adsorption was investigated at an initial Cd(II) concentration of 50 mgL−1 with an adsorbent particle size of 50-70 mesh in erlenmeyer flasks used as batch reactors. The pseudo-first and pseudo-second order kinetic models were used to determine the correlation among the experimental data. The results showed that pretreatment of waste sludge with H2O2 increased equilibrium adsorption capacity. The equilibrium adsorption capacity values obtained for waste activated sludge with and without pretreatment were 39.84 and 20.2 mgg−1, respectively, which increased with increasing solution pH. The correlation coefficients obtained for pseudo-first (R2>0.87) and pseudo -second (R2>0.96) order kinetic models showed that the latter model better described the experimental data on both types of treated and untreated activated sludge than the latter.

Propylene glycol is an organic compound which has wide applications in the pharmaceutical, cosmetics, chemical, and food processing industries. Propylene glycol is readily released into surface and ground waters and the neighboring soils via industrial wastewater effluents posing many health and environmental hazards. The main purpose of this study was to determine the efficiency of fixed bed activated sludge reactor for propylene glycol removal from synthetic wastewater. The lab scale reactor consisted of a cubic Plexiglas aeration tank with a total volume of 16 liters, 12 liters for aeration and 4 liters for settling. 25% of the aeration tank was filled with media as fixed bed for the biofilm to form. To evaluate the optimum efficiency of the reactor under variable organic loadings, the organic loading was increased in two consecutive stages: first by HRT depletion, and second by increasing COD concentration. The COD removal efficiencies obtained for hydraulic retention times of 8, 6, 4 and 2 hours and at an influent COD concentration of 500 mg/L were 95.86, 95.12, 93.96, and 79.08 %, respectively. In the fallowing stages and based on the results obtained from the first stage, a constant HRT of 6 hrs and COD concentrations of 1000, 1500, 2000 and 2500 mg/L were experimented. The removal efficiencies for the above concentrations were 95.95, 88.54, 75.95, and 35.69%, respectively. The results from this study indicate that the fixed bed activated sludge bioreactor satisfactorily capable of removing propylene glycol.

Aims: The main purpose of this study was to determine the efficiency of a sequencing treatment including ultraviolet (UV)/H 2 O 2 oxidation followed by a moving bed bioreactor (MBBR). Materials and Methods: Effect of solution pH, reaction time, and H 2 O 2 concentration were investigated for an industrial wastewater sample. The effluent of the advanced oxidation processes unit was introduced to the MBBR operated for three hydraulic retention times of 4, 8, and 12 h. Results: The optimum condition for industrial wastewater treatment via advanced oxidation was solution pH: 7, H 2 O 2 dose: 1000 mg/L and 90 min reaction time. These conditions led to 74.68% chemical oxygen demand (COD) removal and 66.15% biochemical oxygen demand (BOD 5 ) removal from presedimentation step effluent that initially had COD and BOD 5 contents of 4,400 and 1,950 mg/L, respectively. Conclusion: Combination of UV/H 2 O 2 advanced oxidation with MBBR could result in effluents that meet water quality standards for discharge to receiving waters.