Initial Deposition of Colloidal Particles on a Rough Nanofiltration Membrane

The initial rate of colloid deposition onto semi‐permeable membranes is largely controlled by the coupled influence of permeation drag and particle‐membrane colloidal interactions. Recent studies show that the particle‐membrane interactions are subject to immense local variations due to the inherent morphological heterogeneity (roughness) of reverse osmosis (RO) and nanofiltration (NF) membranes. This experimental investigation reports the effect of membrane roughness on the initial deposition of polystyrene latex particles on a rough NF membrane during cross flow membrane filtration under different operating pressures and solution chemistries. Atomic force microscopy was used to characterize the roughness of the membrane and observe the structure of particle deposits. At the initial stages of fouling, the AFM images show that more particles preferentially accumulate near the “peaks” than in the “valleys” of the rough NF membrane surface.     

Electric-field induced fluctuations in laser generated plasma plume

The effect of an external electric field on laser-generated plasma has been studied. It is observed that the laser-generated plasma can be used for the ignition of a spark in the presence of a low voltage external electric field. An eight-fold emission intensity enhancement in Cu Ⅰ spectral lines are measured as compared to the signal intensity in the absence of an external electric field.The plasma parameters remain the same initially, up to a few microseconds after the generation of plasma, and this feature makes it more interesting for the quantitative analysis of any sample using laser induced breakdown spectroscopy(LIBS). In the presence of an external electric field,fluctuations(contraction and expansion) in the laser-generated plasma are observed which increase the plasma decay time and consequently result in enhanced signal intensity.     

Performance of microwave synthesized dual solvent dope solution and lithium bromide additives on poly(ethersulfone) membranes

BACKGROUND: Generally the fabrication of polymeric membranes is a complicated and expensive process since it involves several steps. The preliminary preparation steps involve polymer drying and dissolution and is very time consuming and expensive. Currently, conventional electrothermal heating (CEH) is used to dissolve polyethersulfone in an aprotic solvent for membrane fabrication. Usually CEH requires 6 to 8 h at temperatures of 80 to 95 °C. This paper reports the fabrication and characterization of polyethersulfone (PES) asymmetric ultrafiltration membrane made from microwave (MW) synthesis casting solution consisting of various compositions of double solvents and lithium bromide (LiBr) additive. RESULTS: Homogeneous dual solvent dope solutions prepared via microware irradiation took only 1 h instead of the 7 h when prepared using CEH. The results also revealed that the membrane permeation and rejection rates, pore size and porosity were dependent on the ratio of LiBr to acetone. Membranes with LiBr kept at 2 and 3 wt% exhibited both high rejection and permeation rates with minimum pore sizes of 1.067 and 1.214 nm respectively. The presence of LiBr and the occurrence of chain scission were elucidated using Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy while its hydrophilic property was confirmed by water absorption and contact angle measurements. CONCLUSIONS: It was concluded that the microwave technique is capable of producing 1 L membrane solutions in less than 1 h. The membranes prepared from the microwave solutions show good rejection and permeation rates. Copyright © 2011 Society of Chemical Industry     

Effects of gating design on structural and mechanical properties of high manganese steel by optimizing casting process parameters

Journal of Mechanical Science and Technology - The impacts of gating design and riser system on structure-property relationship of high manganese steel specimens produced by CO2 sand molding...     

Electrophysiological and Behavioral Responses of a Cuban Population of the Sweet Potato Weevil to its Sex Pheromone

The sex pheromone of feral sweet potato weevils Cylas formicarius elegantulus from Cuba was found, via solid-phase microextraction analysis, to be identical to (Z)-3-dodecenyl (E)-2-butenoate, a previously reported compound. Females emitted 20 pg pheromone d⁻¹. In scanning electron microscopy studies carried out on the male antenna, we identified several types of sensilla: sensilla trichoidea of type 1 (ST1) as long hairs (100–150 μm), sensilla trichoidea of type 2 as short hairs (50–60 μm), sensilla basiconica of type 1 as thick pegs (20–25 μm), sensilla basiconica of type 2 as curved pegs (10–15 μm), and sensilla basiconica of type 3 as thin and straight short pegs (15–20 μm). The same types were observed in female antennae but ST1 were far less abundant than in males. Sensilla chaetica were also found on the flagellum subsegments in both sexes. In electrophysiological tests, the crotonate function in the pheromone structure proved to be critical for activity since regular depolarizations (0.6–0.8 mV) were obtained with puffs on 1 μg of the attractant, but not with puffs of the formate, acetate, propionate, or butyrate analogue of the pheromone. In a double dual-choice olfactometer, males showed maximum activity between the 4th and the 8th hr of scotophase at a dose of 50–1000 ng of pheromone. In field tests, a correlation between the contents of the Z,E isomer in the pheromone formulation with activity was noticed, and baits containing this isomer of stereomeric purity >94% showed the highest attractivity. The presence of 5% of the Z,Z isomer in the lure did not induce any synergistic or inhibitory effect, and the alcohol precursor of the pheromone was inactive. The results show that use of a stereomerically pure pheromone may not be necessary in pest control strategies.     

Indoor levels of volatile organic compounds at Florentine museum environments in Italy

Indoor Air Quality monitoring in cultural institutions is of particular concern to protect these places and the cultural heritage content. An indoor monitoring campaign was performed in three museums in Florence (Italy) to determine the occurrence and levels of volatile organic compounds (VOCs). VOCs of interest included BTEX (benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, xylenes), terpenes, aldehydes, organic acids, and cyclic volatile methyl siloxanes (cVMS). The most abundant VOCs in all samples analyzed were BTEX, which were strictly related to the traffic source, followed by siloxanes and terpenes. Among BTEX, toluene was always the most abundant followed by xylenes, ethylbenzene, and benzene. cVMS in exhibition rooms with the presence of visitors showed higher values compared to samples collected when the museums were closed. Terpenes showed not only the influence of vegetation-biogenic sources surrounding a museum but could also be related to the wood used for the construction of showcases and furniture and the use of cleaning products. Data obtained also showed the presence of organic acids and aldehydes whose source can be traced back to exhibits themselves and wood-based furniture. Assessing the levels of organic acids in museums is important because, over time, it can cause deterioration of the artifacts.     

Optimum structural modelling for tall buildings

It is a common practice to model multi‐storey tall buildings as frame structures where the loads for structural design are supported by beams and columns. Intrinsically, the structural strength provided by the walls and slabs are neglected. As the building height increases, the effect of lateral loads on multi‐storey structures increases considerably. The consideration of walls and slabs in addition to the frame structure modelling shall theoretically lead to improved lateral stiffness. Thus, a more economic structural design of multi‐storey buildings can be achieved. In this research, modelling and structural analysis of a 61‐storey building have been performed to investigate the effect of considering the walls, slabs and wall openings in addition to frame structure modelling. Sophisticated finite element approach has been adopted to configure the models, and various analyses have been performed. Parameters, such as maximum roof displacement and natural frequencies, are chosen to evaluate the structural performance. It has been observed that the consideration of slabs alone with the frame modelling may have negligible improvement on structural performance. However, when the slabs are combined with walls in addition to frame modelling, significant improvement in structural performance can be achieved. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Continuation ratio model for the performance behavior of wastewater collection networks

Canada’s aged wastewater infrastructure is failing. New financial and environmental regulatory requirements demand municipalities to estimate operating and capital expenditures for running the systems into the future, and to develop plans for financial sustainability while protecting public health and the environment. Presently, wastewater pipelines’ deterioration is not well understood and realistic deterioration models need to be developed.This paper presents a new ordinal regression model for the deterioration of wastewater pipelines based on continuation ratio logits. The model is presented using the generalized linear model formulation, and takes into account the ordinal nature of the dependent variable and the interaction effects between explanatory variables. The model provides estimates of conditional probabilities for a pipeline to advance beyond a particular internal condition grade – to worse condition – depending on pipe material and age. The model development and validation procedure is demonstrated using high quality condition assessment data for reinforced concrete (RC) and vitrified clay (VC) pipes from the City of Niagara Falls wastewater collection system.The new model is found to represent the RC and VC pipes’ degradation behavior for in-service pipes up to 110 years of age at the City of Niagara Falls wastewater collection system. RC pipes’ deterioration is found to be age dependent while VC pipes’ deterioration is not age dependent. The VC pipe finding is contrary to other deterioration model studies that indicate that the type of pipe material is not significant and that the deterioration of VC pipes is age dependent. The analysis shows, for example, that the predicted conditional probability for RC pipes to advance beyond internal condition grade 3 is estimated to be 60% at 40 years of age and it increases to 90% at 80 years. Similarly, there is a 60% chance of advancing beyond grade 4 to collapsed/collapse imminent condition at 80 years of age for RC pipes. VC pipes are found to have an indefinite service life if installed without structural damage. However, VC pipes exhibited relatively higher conditional probabilities than RC pipes for advancing to worse internal condition grades for pipes up to 65 years of age. Poor installation practices that resulted in pipe defects, such as open/displaced joints and defective connections are deemed to be the factors that resulted in VC pipe deterioration.The findings from the continuation ratio model can be used for risk-based policy development for maintenance management of wastewater collection systems. The proposed model can help in devising appropriate intervention plans and optimum network maintenance management strategies based on pipelines’ age, material type, and internal condition grades. These predictions are critical if realistic wastewater networks’ future maintenance and operation budgets are to be developed over the life of asset and to meet new regulatory reporting requirements. Further research is required to validate the proposed model in other networks and to determine if the method can be used to model the deterioration of pipe materials other than RC and VC.