The work deals with coal combustion in a pilot-plant fluidised bed (7 cm i.d.) under atmospheric conditions. The aims are to capture and analyse qualitatively as well as quantitatively the volatile polycyclic hydrocarbons emitted by using coal as energy source under various combustion conditions...

Chlorination of drinking water leads to the formation of a variety of Disinfection By-Products (DBPs) that may have adverse health effects on humans. Research on this subject has been continued and new epidemiological and toxicological studies have been conducted. This review summarizes factors...

Sites co-contaminated with organic and metal pollutants are common and considered to be a more complex problem, as the two components often have a synergistic effect on cytotoxicity. This study investigated the dissipation mechnisms for pyrene in cadmium co-contaminated soil in which maize (ZEA MAYS...

This paper presents a methodology of evaluating management options for dredged sediments on the basis of an array of characterization tests and gives an example application for the sediments of Piraeus port. A conceptual model is proposed to guide selection among three management options. The model...

Stabilization/solidification (S/S) processes were utilized to immobilize lead (Pb) and tungsten (W) in contaminated soils, the inclusion of W motivated by the use of the new W-based ammunition. Artificially contaminated soils were prepared by mixing either kaolinite or montmorillonite with 10% Pb...

The performance of a biological treatment of a PAH-contaminated soil was evaluated with respect to its physicochemical and ecotoxicological properties. After six months, the biological treatment led to an significant reduction of 2- and 3-ring PAHs and to a lesser extent to 4-ring PAHs. As a...

The introduction to the European Market of biodiesel blends along with the minimization of the sulphur content in automotive diesel has rejuvenated the research interest on the microbial stability of diesel fuel. Several microorganisms are able to metabolize hydrocarbons contained in conventional...

In 2006, California passed legislation establishing the first State Biomonitoring Program in the USA. The main goals are to: 1) Determine levels of environmental chemical contaminants in a representative sample of Californians; 2) Establish trends in the levels of these chemicals over time; 3)...

Nowadays, the scientific community has focused and prioritised research on “emerging pollutants”. The term “emerging pollutants” stands for the substances that are released in the environment for which currently no regulations are established for their environmental monitoring. Their occurrence is...

Arsenic is an ubiquitous and highly toxic metalloid widely distributed in the environment through both natural and anthropogenic pathways (Liu et al., 2004) and its presence in food composites is a matter of concerns to the well being of both humans and animals. In fact, As has been recently found...

Short-chain chlorinated paraffins (SCCPs) are highly complex technical mixtures of polychlorinated n-alkanes with carbon-chain lengths from C10-C13 and chlorine content between 49 and 70%. They are produced by chlorination of n-alkanes and do not occur naturally. Because of their physical properties...

The present study deals with the problem of soil contamination risk assessment for a region being actively impact by the routine production of Kremikovtzi metallurgical plant near Sofia, Bulgaria. Although the production is now cancelled, the soil pollution is present and needs careful assessment...

Laboratory-scale experiments were performed in order to examine the effect of microwave field on the effectiveness of KPEG method (nucleophilic substitution of the chlorine atoms in a molecule of PCBs by alkaline polyethylene glycol PEG) in the removal of PCBs from highly contaminated mineral oils...

Chlorine was accepted as an effective disinfectant for drinking water in early 1900s. Because of chlorination, chlorine has dramatically reduced the incidence of waterborne diseases. An unwanted side effect is the formation of harmful by-products upon chlorination. The most significant group of...

Activated carbon (AC) is currently being used to treat polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) contaminated field sediment. In the presence of sediment, the sorption capacity of AC for PCBs can be reduced. In this study, sorption attenuation of AC is investigated using previously published data from 5...

The important advantage of zeolite applied to water treatment is its high porosity when comparing to other minerals. The porosity results in good hydrodynamic properties (the increase in the pressure loss on the zeolite filters is 1.5-2.0 times smaller than in the case of sand filters) and...

Activated carbon (AC) amendment for reduction of contaminant exposure in polluted soils and sediments has recently emerged as a promising remediation technique. Here, we provide a short overview of the state-of-the-art in activated carbon (AC) amendment to such sites. Most studies not only in...

A mathematical model to simulate microbial growth and lag time is proposed in the present work in accordance with Sengor et al. (2009). The model is verified experimentally for a mixed microbial culture growing at metal free and at Cr(III) or Cr(VI) contaminated environments. The model is further...

Radiocaesium is an isotope that can enter the food chain after having been absorbed by plants from soil. Our ability to predict the consequences of an accidental release of 137Cs depends mainly on the level of understanding of the mechanisms involved in 137Cs interactions with different components...

Lead (Pb) particles that detach from the plumbing and contaminate drinking water can pose a significant health threat, which is often underestimated. Laboratory simulation of this problem revealed that standard quantification protocols in the US may miss 80% of the lead present in the water. At the...

Plastic pellets (small granules, 1-5 millimeters in diameter) are widely distributed in the ocean and coastal zones all over the world. They are an industrial raw material for the plastic industry and are unintentionally released to the environment both during manufacturing and transport. These...

Maisiagala RADON type radioactive waste storage facility was commissioned in 1963 in a marshy, ecologically sensitive locality, where soluble radionuclides easily can penetrate and migrate with groundwater. To assure the requirements of radiation safety, the analysis of radionuclide leakage from the...

Biological treatment (aerobic and anaerobic) of industrial landfill leachate is limited by the presence of toxic contaminants (e.g., heavy metals) and recalcitrant (biopersistent) organics (e.g., polyphenols, pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, etc.,), hindering viable conditions for biomass proliferation...

The capacity of cyclodextrins in trapping VOCs is studied. Cyclodextrins (CDs) are a family of cyclic oligosaccharides that are composed of α-1,4-linked glucopyranose subunits. The most notable feature of cyclodextrins is their ability to form inclusion complexes (host–guest complexes) in solution...

According to the actual European context, including the development of risk free residential and industrial areas, the main demand lies in instant, accurate and elaborated information regarding environment quality and pollution risks. This paper presents a conceptual architecture for a versatile...