Advances in Environmental Technology
Volume:8 Issue: 2, Spring 2022

This research deals with the sequent sulfonation and magnetization of waste polystyrene to form a novel adsorbent. The novelty is assigned by an anionic surface that can adsorb cationic dye and by a magnetic property allowing it to be separated quickly and practically. The sulfonation was conducted using H2SO4, and the magnetization was performed by the coprecipitation of Fe3O4. The prepared adsorbents were characterized using Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR), X-Ray Diffraction (XRD), and Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) machines. The adsorption capacity was evaluated for the removal of methylene blue (MB) dye from aqueous media conducted by batch experiment. The contact time, adsorbent weight, and solution pH were optimized. The parameters of kinetic and isotherm adsorptions were also determined. The characterization data showed evidence that sulfonated magnetic polystyrene was successfully produced. The adsorbent with 50 wt% of Fe3O4 showed good adsorption capacity and separability effectiveness. The optimum condition of the adsorption of 10 mg/L MB in a 40 mL solution was reached by 15 mg of the adsorbent weight within 45 minutes and at pH 7 with an effectiveness of about 98%. The adsorption kinetics is best suited to a pseudo-second-order with an adsorption rate constant of 0.364 g mg-1 min-1 and is well explained by the Langmuir isotherm model with an adsorption capacity of 46.56 mg/g.

Pollution caused by crude oil is one of the most prevalent environmental problems in oil-rich countries. Bioremediation processes usually exploit the ability of microorganisms to degrade and/or detoxify organic contaminants. A widely used bioremediation strategy is bio-stimulation of the soil’s indigenous microbes by the addition of nutrients, as crude oil contamination tends to result in the rapid depletion of the available pools of major inorganic nutrients such as nitrogen and phosphorus. This study examined the bio-stimulation effect of diammonium phosphate and urea fertilizers on crude oil-contaminated soil enzymes. Soils were artificially contaminated with 3000, 5000, or 8000 ppm of crude oil and treated with Diammonium phosphate (DAP) and urea fertilizers. The activities of soil enzymes such as laccase, lipase, catalase, and peroxidase were analyzed every 6th day for 30 days. The results indicated that the activity of laccase for all the treated soils was significantly higher than the untreated group on days 18, 24, and 30, while those of peroxidase and catalase peaked at day 12, with a sharp decline on days 18 to 30 when compared to the untreated soil. However, the activity of lipase continued to increase until the 30th day in all the treated soils, and the increase was higher in contaminated soils treated with DAP and urea. The decreased activities of peroxidase and catalase in the treated soils may be related to a decrease in the microbial load of the soil. Furthermore, the increase in the activities of soil enzymes, especially in the treated soils, suggested that the treatments contributed to enhancing the activities of the enzymes, and hence may help in the bioremediation process through bio-stimulation of the soil enzymes that function in the breakdown of environmental contaminants.

Contamination of different ecological spheres with acid mine drainage (AMD) has raised numerous concerns in countries with well-developed mining industries, thus calling for urgent intervention measures to redress the prevailing water pollution challenges. Due to its chemical composition and (eco)-toxicological nature, AMD can pose severe environmental damage if not properly managed. Herein, the performance of subsurface horizontally flow constructed wetland (SSHF-CW) equipped with Vetiveria zizanioides for the treatment of AMD was explicitly assessed. To fulfill the goals of this phytoremediation study, the experiments were administered for a period of 30 days using authentic AMD from an active gold mine; and the quality of the feed and product water was monitored daily. The results showed a slight increase in pH from 2.4 to 4.01 and a net reduction in electrical conductivity, total dissolved solids, and sulphate, registering ≥ 47.20%, ≥ 46.00%, and ≥ 33.04%, respectively. Thenceforth, there was a net removal of metal in the following order; Zn (77.75%) ≥ Fe (75.36%) ≥ Mn (67.48%) ≥ Al (55.05%) ≥ Ni (44.01%) ≥ Cu (11.36%). Interestingly, the obtained results demonstrated that Vetiveria zizanioides was tolerant to AMD with a tolerance index of 1.23 after 30 days, while the removed metals were partitioned amongst the substrate, plant matrices, and external factors. Chemical species accumulated by the plants were more concentrated in the roots except for Mn, which was more concentrated in the shoots. The X-ray fluorescence and X-ray diffractometers analyses revealed the presence of chemical species in the substrate, while Fourier transform infrared and scanning electron microscopy-energy dispersive spectroscopy analysis revealed the presence of chemical species in plants roots, confirming that substrate and plants play a huge role in pollutants removal. As such, it can be concluded that SSHF-CW equipped with Vetiveria zizanioides plays a major role in the removal of contaminants from AMD and could be employed in derelict mines or small operations as a passive treatment technique to phyto-remediate mine effluents.

India is the second-largest sugarcane producer and consumer in the world, with 29.66 million tonnes of annual production and 25.51 million tonnes of consumption, along with a high degree of contaminated wastewater from sugar industries. Sugar industries in India generate about 1,000 litres of wastewater for one tonne of crushed sugarcane. The effluent discharged from sugar industries contains high concentration of biochemical oxygen demand, chemical oxygen demand, total dissolved solids, nitrogen, and phosphorous, causing serious environmental pollution problems. A combination of suspended and attached growth wastewater treatment systems can be used by integrating a moving bed biofilm reactor (MBBR) with a sequencing batch reactor (SBR) known as the moving-bed biofilm sequencing batch reactor (MBSBR), which is an aerobic treatment method. It is a promising technology as it has no requirement for sludge recirculation and requires lesser reactor volumes. In this study, the moving-bed biofilm sequencing batch reactor has been modelled for treating sugar industry wastewater. At a cycle time of 2 h, the biochemical oxygen demand removal efficiency is around 87% at 500 mg/L, sludge loading rate is 13 kg BODm-2d-1, chemical oxygen demand removal efficiency is 84.2%, food to micro-organism ratio is 1.09, and the mixed liquor volatile suspended solids and mixed liquor suspended solids values are around 2909 mg/L and 3639 mg/L, respectively. The economic viability of this technology is still to be established for treating sugar industry wastewater. This study can guide scientists, researchers, designers, and consultants when selecting wastewater treatment technology for the sugar industry. This technology has the potential to be replicated in other industries with similar wastewater characteristics.

Increased urbanization, industrialization, transportation, and infrastructural development in cities have resulted in an increase in noise level at an alarming rate. Traffic noise is one of the major sources of environmental noise pollution in urban areas. It reduces the wellbeing elements for the urban population. Exposure to excessive noise reduces the overall psychological and physiological wellbeing. The psychological physiological impacts are sleep disturbance, annoyance, irritation, headache, loss of concentration, sleeplessness, low work performance, hearing disability, impaired cognitive ability, hypertension, and much more. In this experimental study, the assessments and analysis of traffic noise in Berhampur, India, have been done. Its impact on socio-health has been studied. The key locations covering the entire city were chosen for traffic noise assessment. Also, the wellness and health of the affected people have been studied and statistical validation has been made. The study reveals that traffic noise levels and its effects are at an alarming state in the city.

Diesel engines are critical to economic mobility. Because of the increasing scarcity of petroleum resources and the strict administrative rules, engine manufacturers and users must follow environmental regulations to avoid undesirable emissions. Vegetable oil could be used in diesel engines due to its high fluidity, poor stratification, ineffective ignition, and carbon buildup in the fuel system. The transesterification method reduces the viscosity of vegetable oil by converting it into methyl ester or ethyl ester, which is also known as biodiesel. This research examined the productivity, combustion, and output of zinc oxide nanoparticle disseminated canola oil biodiesel. The canola oil biodiesel was produced using the traditional transesterification process. The experimental hydrocarbons were produced using a magnetic agitator and ultrasonication, with a scattering of zinc oxide nanoparticles at a dosage of 50mg/l. The experiments were conducted at 1500 rpm. The use of zinc oxide nanoparticle dispersed canola oil biodiesel improved the specific fuel consumption, heat release rate, and other parameters. When compared to diesel, the brake thermal efficiency, nitrogen oxide, and hydrocarbon emissions were all lower. This study provides critical guidance on the use of sustainable energy, resulting in lower conventional oil consumption.