دکتر محمدعلی ززولی

Microplastics (MPs) have emerged as a pollutant in water and various types of beverages. Given that humans are regularly exposed to the risk of microplastic accumulation in the body through the consumption of water and different drinks, this review study aimed to assess the occurrence of this emerging pollutant across water and various beverage categories.

For this review study, the articles on the presence of MPs in beverages published up to 2024 were thoroughly reviewed. These articles were identified through searches conducted in reputable national and international databases, including Google Scholar, PubMed, Embase, Science Direct, and SID. The search utilized both Persian and English keywords, such as microplastic, beverages, human health, tea, bottled water, tap water, and soft drinks.

The review examined the presence of microplastics in a range of beverage types, including bottled water (11 articles), tap water (6 articles), tea and coffee (7 articles), milk (6 articles), and energy drinks and sodas (4 articles). According to the results, the frequency of MPs in each liter of bottled water and tap water was between 4.6 and 20348 particles, and their dominant sources were polypropylene and polyethylene terephthalate. The size range of MPS in tea varied from 200.6-220.7 µm, and the common polymers identified were ethylene-vinyl acetate and acrylonitrile butadiene styrene. Furthermore, the average number of MPs in milk samples was 6±5 particles per liter. The results pointed out that the possibility of milk being contaminated by MPs during the production process was higher than during the packaging process.

As evidenced by the obtained results, MPs were present in all the beverages studied, and the sources of their contamination included the packaging of bottles and abrasion of bottle caps in bottled water, water treatment and pipelines in tap water, agricultural plastic films, and the use of plastic packaging in tea and milk. The presence of MPs in water and beverages has adverse effects on human health, and there is a need for further studies and new standards to control the related risks.

 One of the main limitations of using compost is the possibility of heavy metals with high concentrations. Unlike organic contaminants, these elements resist decomposition by microorganisms and, when present at elevated levels, pose a toxicity risk to soil, plants, aquatic ecosystems, and human health.

 This study was a descriptive cross-sectional study conducted in 2021-2022w. Samples were collected from three compost factories in Mazandaran (Babol, Behshahr, and Tonekabon) using random sampling methods and prepared according to the acid digestion method (National Standard Institute 5615). The concentration of heavy metals in the samples was measured using an ICP-OES.

 The average concentration of arsenic, zinc, lead, cadmium, cobalt, chromium, copper, and nickel in the analyzed samples were 1.38±3.47, 490±151.5, 74±12, 2.56±0.65, 4.5±1.46, 31.72±16.47, 186.11±49.9, 22.72±4.2 mg/kg dry weight of compost, respectively. The average concentration of heavy metals in different cities was compared using the Kruskal-Wallis test, based on which the concentration of heavy metals in none of the cities was significantly different from each other (p>0.05).

 The concentration of heavy metals in the investigated compost samples was lower than the limits specified in both domestic and international standards. Therefore, the final product of the examined compost factories meets the health standards for heavy metals and is safe for use in environmental applications.

Nowadays, recycling is one of the ways to save mankind from the mass of waste it produces, and waste separation from the source is the first and most important link in the field of urban waste recycling. Since the necessity and basis of recycling is people's participation in separation plans from the source, the present study was conducted to investigate the awareness, attitude, and performance of the people of Mazandaran province regarding the source separation of household waste in 2021.

The present study was a descriptive-analytical and cross-sectional study, and the tool used in it was a researcher-made questionnaire including three dimensions of knowledge, attitude, and performance, the link of which was provided online to qualified people. The qualitative content validity of this questionnaire was confirmed by 8 environmental health experts in the field of the research subject. The reliability of the tool was also estimated through the Retest Method. Furthermore, the values of Cronbach's alpha coefficient for the three dimensions of awareness, attitude, and performance were calculated. In the following, the samples were selected in virtual groups based on the available sampling method and through the distribution of the questionnaire link online. Analysis of variance was used to compare the mean scores in the levels of variables, Pearson's correlation test was used to examine the relationship between the scores of awareness, attitude, and performance dimensions, and linear regression was used to examine the effect of independent variables. Finally, the data was analyzed in SPSS software (version 22).

For the entire study population (305 people), the range and mean score of awareness were 0-6, and 5.03±1.18 respectively, the range and mean score of attitude were 17-85 and 61.01± 9.45, and the range and mean score of performance were 6-30 and 11.43±5.19, respectively. Also, there was a significant correlation between the mean scores of the dimensions of awareness and attitude (correlation coefficient=0.70), awareness and performance (correlation coefficient=0.68), and attitude and performance (correlation coefficient=0.63).

The results of this study, which was conducted to measure the knowledge, attitude, and performance of the people of Mazandaran province regarding the separation of household waste from the source and waste recycling, and with a survey of 305 households in this province, showed that although the most of people have a piece of proper knowledge and attitude related to the importance of separation and recycling of solid waste, they have not participated much in the plans of waste separation from the source. Therefore, in order to increase the level of people's performance, it is recommended to develop incentive programs in the field of source separation, including awarding prizes or applying discounts on waste charges, as well as providing suitable containers for waste separation to households for free by the municipality to encourage waste separation.

Adherence to the principles of personal protection and commitment to health guidelines and principles of prevention perform important roles in controlling COVID-19 in a community. In this re3search we studied necessary measures to prevent COVID-19 in university dormitories at Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences, 2021.

In this descriptive-analytical study, 114 students in active dormitories during the COVID-19 pandemic participated in an online survey and their views and knowledge about COVID-19 preventive measures in the dormitories were examined. The samples were recruited using census method and data were analyzed in SPSS.

The results of the Chi-square test showed a significant relationship between adherence to preventive measures and educational level (P=0.015). Following personal hygiene was found to be significantly different according to being a local student, having underlying diseases, and the number of students at rooms (P<0.05). Findings showed that physical distancing and screening had no significant relationship with any of the variables studied (P>0.05).

The study showed that among the four areas investigated, personal hygiene practices and following the principles of prevention of COVID-19 were in a good condition, while physical distancing and screening were not satisfying. Therefore, university authorities should make serious changes to improve these issues at dormitories.

With increasing population growth and water pollution, fresh water supply sources are declining and can not meet today's human needs. Thus, energy conversion systems with high efficiency and low pollution such as desalination microbial cell have been considered. Therefore the aim of this research was to investigation the efficiency of microbial desalination cell (MDC) for desalination and treatment of salt wastewater.

To address this issue, the decision was taken to use saline synthetic wastewater with different initial salt concentrations (2, 5, 7 and 10 g/L NaCl) and, different hydraulic retention times (1, 2, 3 and 72 h) in open circuit voltage (OCV) and closed circuit voltage (CCV) continuous mode.

The results showed that highest EC removal was 11.2% and 14.3% with 10 g/L NaCl in open and closed circuit mode, respectively. Maximum COD removal of 68.7% was achieved in CCV mode that was obtained at 10 g/L NaCl. Additionally, Escherichia coli, Bacillus, Enterobacter, Staphylococcus aureus, Pseudomonas and Citrobacter were diagnose as effective bacteria in decomposing wastewater.

The obtained results proved that MDC desalination microbial cell technology is Emerging technology that has many unknown aspects; however, it is expected to be an appropriate technique for wastewater treatment and desalination.

Environmental factors can play a role in incidence, infection, and mortality rates of Coronavirus disease (COVID-19). In this study, we performed a systematic review of environmental factors affecting the incidence, infection, and mortality rates of COVID-19.

In this review, articles, case studies, and official reports were searched in electronic databases, including PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, Google Scholar, Magiran, and Scientific Information Database (SID)  using the following keywords: COVID-19, Environmental factors, Air pollution, Temperature and humidity, Water and wastewater, and Coronavirus. Studies on the relationship between environmental factors affecting infection and mortality rates of COVID-19 published until July 2021 were selected. Qualitative evaluation of articles was performed using the STROBE checklist.

Out of 62 articles found 30 were reviewed. Air pollution, temperature, humidity, water, wastewater, and waste could play a role in incidence, infection, and mortality rates of COVID-19. Environmental control was found to be effective in preventing the spread of infection and reducing the mortality rate of COVID-19. Improving environmental performance could be of great benefit in preventing the spread of many diseases, particularly the COVID-19 pandemic.  

Ensuring global environmental performance is essential to protect all countries against COVID-19 and other public health hazards. Meanwhile, more investment in research and development is needed.

Malachite green is one of the most widely used dyes in various industries, aquaculture, and fungicides. The residues have adverse effects on environmental and human health and should be removed from the effluent before discharging to the environment. The purpose of this study was to investigate the efficiency of photocatalytic process using halloysite-titanium dioxide nanocomposite in the removal of malachite green from aqueous solutions and the effect of various parameters on the process efficiency.

This experimental study was performed on a laboratory scale in a discontinuous system. In this process, a 15 W (UV-C) lamp of 26 mm diameter and length of 45 cm and a nanocomposite (halloysite-titanium dioxide) were used. The influence of contact time, nanocomposite dose, dye concentration, and pH of the reaction on the removal efficiency was investigated. The properties of the synthesized nanocomposite were determined by sol-gel method using XRD and SEM techniques. The concentration of malachite green was measured using a UV-VIS spectrophotometer at 619 nm.

The best photocatalytic dye removal efficiency (91.29%) was seen at 3 mg/l dye concentration, pH= 10, contact time= 90 min, and nanocomposite dose= 0.1 g/l.

This study showed that photocatalytic process using nanocomposite (halloysite-titanium dioxide) is efficient in decomposing and removing malachite green.

The world has made unprecedented efforts to control the Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), however, the number of positive cases are increasingly being seen every day. Therefore, there is an urgent need for more effective preventive measures to limit the spread of the infection which require more precise understanding of the routes of transmission and its stability in different environments.

In this review, all articles published up to September, 2020 on the stability of coronaviruses, including SARS‐CoV‐2 were studied. PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, Sciencedirect and Google Scholar were thoroughly searched. Keywords used in the search were Coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2, COVID-19, and Stability. The World Health Organization (WHO) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) updates were also used for the latest information on the disease.

Transmission of SARS‐CoV‐2 was observed to be through aerosols. SARS-CoV-2 and other human and animal coronaviruses have very low stability on low porosity surfaces. The stability of SARS-CoV-2 on surfaces in vitro was similar to that of SARS-CoV-1. Some coronaviruses can survive for many hours to days in fecal, water, and wastewater samples. Findings showed the risk of transmission of SARS‐CoV‐2 through fecal-oral route and water contaminated by wastewater. Coronaviruses survive at lower temperatures and lower relative humidity.

There are still many challenges to the survival of coronaviruses and very little data is currently available. Lack of effective treatment and vaccines call for more protective measures and good personal hygiene to avoid infection and preventing its spread.

So far, different methods have been used to remove residual antibiotics from aquatic environments. This study investigated the efficiency of enzyme horseradish peroxidase (HRP) in presence of hydrogen peroxide in removal of Tetracycline and Ciprofloxacin in a batch system.

In an experimental study on laboratory scale, the effects of contact time, concentrations of H2O2, the antibiotics, and enzyme, and reaction pH on the performance of pure HRP enzyme in the presence of H2O2, were investigated. To measure the efficiency of the enzymatic process, the residual antibiotics were measured using HPLC equipped with a reverse phase column (C-18, 5% micrometer, 250 * 4.6 mm). The flow rate was 1 ml/min and the injection volume was 40 μl. The mobile phase of Tetracycline was 0.1 M TFA- methanol (60:40) used at 254 nm and the mobile phase of ciprofloxacin was 0.01 M acetonitrile- phosphate (8:92) at 220 nm. All experiments were performed in a discontinuous system at laboratory temperature.

Removal efficiencies of Tetracycline and Ciprofloxacin were 40% and 95%, respectively, at 10 mg/l initial concentrations of antibiotics, 10-min contact time, Tetracycline pH= 4, and Ciprofloxacin pH= 7. The removal efficiency of Ciprofloxacin was two times more than that of Tetracycline.

The free HRP could be used as an effective process in removing Tetracycline and Ciprofloxacin from wastewater.

Excessive intake of heavy metals has adverse health effects and smoking is one of the sources of these elements. The aim of this study was to investigate the concentrations of 11 heavy metals in tobacco of different widely-consumed brands of cigarettes and hookahs in Iran.

Concentrations of nine types of cigarettes and four types of hookah tobacco were measured using inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). Statistical analyses were performed using Shapiro-Wilk pre-test, independent t-test, one-way analysis of variance, and Tukey Post Hoc Test.

Manganese and selenium had the highest and the lowest concentrations in cigarette and hookah tobacco, respectively. One-way analysis of variance showed significant differences in concentrations of manganese, barium, and antimony between tobacco of different types of cigarettes (P<0.05). The mean concentrations of the elements in cigarettes were higher than the hookah. Tukey and Mann-Whitney test showed that the mean concentrations of all elements were not significantly different between different types of tobacco in cigarette and hookah (P> 0.05).

High levels of heavy metals were found in cigarette and hookah tobacco in Iranian market. The dangers of these elements to human health, requires enforcing strict regulations to reduce consumption and informing people about their harmful effects.

The bulk of the waste of our country is considered to be corrupt.Compost is the best option for managing this waste component.That's why a lot of compost industries have been built in the country.Produced fertilizer compost should be in accordance with standards,so that it can be used to improve soil quality;Therefore,the purpose of this study was to study the physical,chemical and biological properties of compost manure produced by compost industries in Mazandaran,Golestan and Guilan provinces in 2016 and compare them with standards.

This study is a descriptive-analytic study.Sampling and analysis of physical,chemical and biological parameters; Once a month during the 3 months of spring.Data were analyzed using SPSS16 statistical software.

The results showed that pH, particulate matter, phosphorus,percentage of foreign matter and heavy metals in Babol,Rasht and Aq Qala samplers were lower than standard standards of Iran,WHO and Guttos theory.In terms of moisture and C/N it is compost grade 2.For example,in terms of carbon dioxide,organic matter and nitrogen are in the compass grade I and Iran's Gotthes theory and are acceptable.In terms of fecal coliforms and Salmonella in Class A, it is considered to be in Class B leech seed.

This study showed that the quality of compost produced is in grade 2 and therefore, in order to achieve grade 1 compost,measures such as separation at source and more principled utilization of the fertilization process are needed.

 one of the major challenges in urban management in human societies is related to the collection, recycling and disposal of solid waste and sewage. Poor waste management causes pollution of water, soil and air. It will have a major impact on public health. The aim of present study was to investigate the current status and select the best options of management of municipal solid waste in Noor city (Mazandaran, Iran) using life cycle assessment (LCA) methodology.

This research considered with five scenarios: 1) Recycling, composting and unsanitary landfilling; 2) Recycling, composting and sanitary landfilling; 3) Recycling, incineration and sanitary landfilling; 4) Recycling, composting and anaerobic digestion, incineration, sanitary landfilling; 5) Recycling and unsanitary landfilling. The required data for life cycle assessment inventory were collected through reviewing resources, preparing of questionnaires, completing the questionnaire by staff, and field inspections.The life cycle inventory was approved by the IWM model.

The scenario 5, which is the current situation in the region, had the highest environmental impact in terms of toxic emissions and ecological indicators among all the scenarios. Energy consumption in the scenarios 1 and 5 was higher than the unsanitary landfilling in comparison to the other scenarios. Accordingly, the scenarios 5 and 4 had the most and the least impact on methane gas production.

According to the ecological index, the fourth scenario including recycling, composting and anaerobic digestion, and sanitary landfilling was the best scenario.  Fifth scenario with the highest pollution load was the worst scenario evaluated.

Hospital wastes with the content of infectious, pathologic, sharp, pharmaceupitical and genotoxic materials are classified as hazardous wastes. Of which, genotoxic residues wirh mutagenic and teratogenic effects are of most great concern on human health. Genetic wastes are referred to as cytotoxic, chemical, and radioactive drugs used to treat cancer or treat transplantation. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the management of hospital wastes in Mazandaran province with emphasis on genotoxic waste.

This descriptive cross-sectional study was carried out in 35 governmental and social hospitals in Mazandaran province to determine the satus of hospital waste with focus on geotoxic waste. The quanity, quality and management approaches of hospital and genotoxic wastes in the studied hospitals were surveyed with a validated questionnaire. Results obtained from the present study were analyzed with Excel software.

The average waste per each hospital bed was estimated to be 3.51 kilograms. Of which, 2.2, 1.24, 1.9 kg were categorized as municipal, chemical, and genotoxic wastes, respectively. The average of the hospital waste management index in Mazandaran province was found to be about 84 out of 100, indicating good management of these wastes. The management of genotoxic waste in 7 specialized chemotherapy hospitals was estimated to be 64 out of 100, indicating the average state of genotoxic waste management for these hospitals. In 28 non-chemotherapy hospitals, the genotoxic waste management index was approximated 42 out of 100, indicating poor management of these wastes.

The main weaknesses in hospital waste management are associated with the management of chemical-pharmaceutical and genotoxic wastes. Accordingly, improvement the quality of genotoxic and chemical-pharmaceutical wastes should be concerned in the future planning.

Wastewater olive processing industries have significant amounts of organic compounds resistant to biodegradation which are hazardous if not treated and discharged to the environment. Advanced oxidation processes such as Fenton process have been considered to increase and improve the biological degradability of this type of wastewater. Current study aimed at investigating the efficiency of Fenton process in olive oil mill wastewater treatment.

A laboratory-scale experimental study was carried out. Wastewater properties of olive oil such as COD, BOD5, TOC, color, and turbidity were determined, then the efficiency of Fenton process in wastewater treatment was evaluated. The effects of parameters such as ferrous ion, hydrogen peroxide concentration, pH, time, etc. on the performance of the process were determined. Then, the optimal conditions were found for the Fenton process. All examinations were done according to Standard Methods for the examination of Water and Wastewater.

Concentrations of COD and BOD were 67427 and 22400 mg/L, respectively. The highest removal rates in optimum conditions for major pollutants such as COD, BOD, TOC, and color were 81.9%, 60.13%, 57.43%, 44.2%, and 91.7%, respectively obtained at 150 minutes.

Fenton process by producing hydroxyl radicals can highly remove pollutants resulting from olive oil waste and can be applied before biological processes.

One of the main problems of pollution of aquatic environments is hardly biodegradable chemicals with high toxicity such as antibiotics. If they are not removed from the wastewater, particularly the hospital wastewater, many health and environmental hazards are created. Therefore, appropriate management and treatment of this type of wastewater is highly necessary. This research aimed at investigating the efficiency of advanced oxidation process by ozone photocatalytic method combined with zinc oxide in removal of amoxicillin from wastewater.

The present study was conducted on laboratory scale in a pre-designed reactor. The effects of ozone concentration (5-10 mg/min), catalyst concentration (0.25-1.5mg/l), amoxicillin concentration (10-100 mg/l), and pH (3-11) were investigated on the process efficiency by HPLC. Thirty specimens were studied using central composite design method and the information was evaluated by surface response method using Design Expert7. Data analysis was done applying ANOVA and regression analysis.

The removal efficiency of amoxicillin was 93% under optimal conditions (ozone dose: 3 mg/min, pH 11, catalyst dose: 0.875 mg/l, and amoxicillin concentration: 55mg/l). ANOVA and regression analysis showed that the fitted model properly matched with laboratory results.

This study showed that the ozone photocatalytic process along with zinc oxide could be applied as a suitable and effective method in treatment of antibiotics in aqueous environments.

High concentration of nitrate in drinking water can be detrimental to health. It can be reduced to nitrite in children Stomach and lead the methemoglobinemia. Therefore, the removal of nitrate from polluted water is necessary. The purpose of this study is to determine the effectiveness of walnut shell adsorbent in removing nitrates from aqueous solutions.

This experimental study was conducted in a batch laboratory scale. The walnut shell were collected and burned in the furnace at 700 סC in 1 hours and sieved in 20 -100 mesh. The optimum values of pH, contact time, adsorbent dosage and and the different concentrations of nitrate were experimented in lab scale conditions were determined. The nitrate concentration was measured in wavelength of 220 and 275 nm by spectrophotometer. Also pHpzc of absorbent have been evaluated.

The results showed that optimum pH was 9 so that by increasing and decreasing optimum pH, removal efficiency increase and decrease. The removal efficiency Increased until 120 minutes, but after 120 minutes the percentage of removal was reduced Increasing of adsorbent dosage and the different concentrations of nitrate cause the increase and decrease of adsorbtion respectively. At optimal conditions, nitrate removal efficiency was 78%

The result of the present study shows that walnut shell can be used as an effective and cheap adsorbent for nitrate removal and the process is more efficient at Alkaline pH .

Olive Mill Wastewater (OMWW) is one of the most polluted sanitary wastewaters that its ineffective treatment will cause severe pollution of the environment. In this study, OMWW treatment wasinvestigated using combined electrocoagulation and novel advanced oxidation process. Biodegradability, efficiency and kinetics of removal of turbidity and organic matter from the OMWW by applying the operational parameters of electrocoagulation such as current density (0-0.77 A/dm2), type of anode electrode, reaction time (0-45 min) were investigated. Various types of advanced oxidation processes were performed to determine the the efficiency of removal of TOC and kinetics and biobegradability. The optimum condition for removing turbidity, BOD, TOC and consumed Iron anode electrod in electrocoagulation were 78%, 57%, 72% and 583 mg/ per liter of wastewater, respectively. Thus, the kinetic of TOC removal was first-order and was 0.027 min-1. The TOC removal efficiency of pretreated OMWW in oxidation processes of US, H2O2, SOP, O3 / H2O2, COP, COP/US and H2O2/COP/US were measured as 8%, 15%, 20%, 25%, 61%, 68% and 75%, respectively. The highest biodegradability index (BOD/TOC) in the COP/US/H2O2 process was increased 1.5 times. The advenced oxidation process of COP/US/H2O2 follwed by electrocagulation demonstrated an effective treatment of OMWW and improved its biodegradability. Therefore, this process can be used for efficient treatment of OMWW in olive and similar industries.

Direct application of sewage sludge in agriculture has been limited due to the presence of pathogens, inappropriate fermentation of organic waste and the presence of heavy metals. Co-composting of sewage sludge with biological waste is a method to reuse waste that leads safe disposal of sludge and waste. The purpose of this study was to review the advantages of co-compost and the possibility of compost production from a mixture of sewage sludge and biological waste. In this paper, various methods for the production of co-compost were also reviewed. In this paper several factors including composting process optimization, compost controlling agents, co-composting raw materials and use of sewage sludge and biological wastewater, in the preparation of compost were evaluated as well as the role of co-compost in the challenge of agricultural wastewaters. The raw sludge in a compost with organic waste, along with biochemical solids (fat, protein, and cellulose), are pure in terms of process evolution, the destruction of biochemical compounds in composting materials, the potential for pathogen inactivation, nutrient retention and improved biological activity. Proper management of municipal sewage treatment, organic and biological waste produced in the agro-industry play an important role in promoting the community health and the environment. The high cost of biological waste disposal, its environmental impacts, and the many risks associated with the use of chemical fertilizers are the problems due to ignorance compost production. Therefore, producing compost and co-comosting should be considered to promot environmental health.

Dewatered sludge of sewage treatment plants can be used in agriculture if required standards are followed. Heavy metals are among the chemical pollutants that are hazardous to health. Therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate the amount of heavy metals in dewatered sludge of municipal wastewater treatment plant and compare that with the standards and sludge of other wastewater treatment plants in Iran. In this experimental study, the sludge samples were taken from the sewage sludge in Sari wastewater treatment plant. Sampling and analysis were done during four seasons with three replicates in 2017. The samples were digested and prepared for extraction of heavy metals using standard method. Heavy metal content including Cd, Pb, Cr, Zn, Cu, and Ni was measured by atomic absorption. Data were analyzed using SPSS V24 applying t-test. The average concentrations of Cd, Pb, Cr, Zn, Cu, and Ni were 0.3 ± 0.18, 35.81 ± 9.54, 62.55 ± 14.72, 950 ± 149.93, 354 ± 107.45, and 62.4 ± 18.47 mg/kg dry weight, respectively. In current study the concentrations of heavy metals in dewatered sludge were below the maximum permissible standard of 10716 Iran for compost and other standards. So, dewatered sludge of Sari wastewater treatment plant can be used in agriculture while following all parameters and composting operations.