Running a conference as a clean product International Conference on Pollution Prevention, Clean Technologies and Clean Products, Washington, DC, June 10-13, 1990 /

Mode of access: Internet.

Development of a non-destructive fluorescence technique for analysis of contact lens deposition levels

The primary objective of this research has been to determine the potential of fluorescence spectroscopy as a method for analysis of surface deposition on contact lenses. In order to achieve this it was first necessary to ascertain whether fluorescence analysis would be able to detect and distinguish between protein and lipid deposited on a lens surface. In conjunction with this it was important to determine the specific excitation wavelengths at which these deposited species were detected with the greatest sensitivity. Experimental observations showed that an excitation wavelength of 360nm would detect lipid deposited on a lens surface, and an excitation wavelength of 280nm would detect and distinguish between protein and lipid deposited on a contact lens. It was also very important to determine whether clean unspoilt lenses showed significant levels of fluorescence themselves. Fluorescence spectra recorded from a variety of unworn contact lenses at excitation wavelengths of 360nm and 280nm indicated that most contact lens materials do not fluoresce themselves to any great extent. Following these initial experiments various clinically and laboratory based studies were performed using fluorescence spectroscopy as a method of analysing contact lens deposition levels. The clinically based studies enabled analysis of contact lenses with known wear backgrounds to be rapidly and individually analysed following discontinuation of wear. Deposition levels in the early stages of lens wear were determined for various lens materials. The effect of surfactant cleaning on deposition levels was also investigated. The laboratory based studies involved comparing some of the in vivo results with those of identical lenses that had been spoilt using an in vitro method. Finally, an examination of lysosyme migration into and out of stored ionic high water contact lenses was made.

Vision2020 and the English language : a study of the role of language in national development.

The research reported here is an investigation into the problems of social and economic development of a multiethic and multicultural country which has the added challenge of adopting a non-indigenous code to facilitate the development process. Malaysia's power to negotiate outcomes favourable to the interest of the country is critical for the successful attainment of the goals and objectives of VISION2020. Therefore the mechanisms of the human resource development programme have to be efficacious. The three hypotheses of this study are as follows: 1. there is a fear that the problems and challenges posed by the development plans, have been conceptually trivialised; 2. based on (1) above there is a concern that solutions proposed are inadequate and inappropriate and 3. the outcome of both (1) and (2) can lead to the potential underachievement of national goals and objectives. The study proposes a complex model for conceptualising the problem which looks at the relationship between society and language, which any solutions proposed must take into proper consideration. The study looks at the mechanisms available for the smooth absorption of new Malaysian members to new and international communities. A large scale investigation was undertaken with the researcher functioning as a participant observer. An in-depth study of one particular educational ecology yielded approximately 38 hours of interviews and 100 questionnaires. These data were analysed both for explicit information and implicit implications. By some criteria national policies appear to be having the desired effect, and can be given a clean bill of health. By others it is clear that major adjustments would be necessary if the nation is to achieve its objectives in full. Based on the evidence gathered, thr study proposes an apprenticeship approach to training programmes for effective participation of new members in the new ecologies.

Enhanced renewable energy adoption for sustainable development in India:interpretive structural modeling approach

Poverty alleviation and social upliftment of rural India is closely linked with the availability and use of energy for development. At the same time, sustainable supply of clean and affordable renewable energy sources is required if development is to be sustainable, so that it does not cause any environmental problems. The purpose of this paper is to determine the key variables of renewable energy implementation for sustainable development, on which the top management should focus. In this paper, an interpretive structural modeling (ISM) - based approach has been employed to model the implementation variables of renewable energy for sustainable development. These variables have been categorized under ‘enablers’ that help to increase the implementation of renewable energy for sustainable development. A major finding of this research is that public awareness regarding renewable energy for sustainable development is a very significant enabler. In this paper, an interpretation of variables of renewable energy for sustainable development in terms of their driving and dependence powers has been examined. For better results, top management should focus on improving the high-driving power enablers such as leadership, strategic planning, public awareness, top management support, availability of finance, government support, and support from interest groups.

Heterogeneous catalysts for clean technology:spectroscopy, design, and monitoring

Reactive, but not a reactant. Heterogeneous catalysts play an unseen role in many of today's processes and products. With the increasing emphasis on sustainability in both products and processes, this handbook is the first to combine the hot topics of heterogeneous catalysis and clean technology. It focuses on the development of heterogeneous catalysts for use in clean chemical synthesis, dealing with how modern spectroscopic techniques can aid the design of catalysts for use in liquid phase reactions, their application in industrially important chemistries - including selective oxidation, hydrogenation, solid acid- and base-catalyzed processes - as well as the role of process intensification and use of renewable resources in improving the sustainability of chemical processes. With its emphasis on applications, this book is of high interest to those working in the industry.

Development of an odor management plan for industrial stationary sources in an urban environment: A case study for Broward County, Florida

Objectionable odors remain at the top of air pollution complaints in urban areas such as Broward County that is subject to increasing residential and industrial developments. The odor complaints in Broward County escalated by 150 percent for the 2001 to 2004 period although the population increased by only 6 percent. It is estimated that in 2010 the population will increase to 2.5 million. Relying solely on enforcing the local odor ordinance is evidently not sufficient to manage the escalating odor complaint trends. An alternate approach similar to odor management plans (OMPs) that are successful in managing major malodor sources such as animal farms is required. ^ This study aims to develop and determine the feasibility of implementing a comprehensive odor management plan (COMP) for the entire Broward County. Unlike existing OMPs for single sources where the receptors (i.e. the complainants) are located beyond the boundary of the source, the COMP addresses a complex model of multiple sources and receptors coexisting within the boundary of the entire county. Each receptor is potentially subjected to malodor emissions from multiple sources within the county. Also, the quantity and quality of the source/receptor variables are continuously changing. ^ The results of this study show that it is feasible to develop a COMP that adopts a systematic procedure to: (1) Generate maps of existing odor complaint areas and malodor sources, (2) Identify potential odor sources (target sources) responsible for existing odor complaints, (3) Identify possible odor control strategies for target sources, (4) Determine the criteria for implementing odor control strategies, (5) Develop an odor complaint response protocol, and (6) Conduct odor impact analyses for new sources to prevent future odor related issues. Geographic Information System (GIS) is used to identify existing complaint areas. A COMP software that incorporates existing United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) air dispersion software is developed to determine the target sources, predict the likelihood of new complaints, and conduct odor impact analysis. The odor response protocol requires pre-planning field investigations and conducting surveys to optimize the local agency available resources while protecting the citizen's welfare, as required by the Clean Air Act. ^

Clean hydrogen production and carbon dioxide capture methods

Fossil fuels constitute a significant fraction of the world's energy demand. The burning of fossil fuels emits huge amounts of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. Therefore, the limited availability of fossil fuel resources and the environmental impact of their use require a change to alternative energy sources or carriers (such as hydrogen) in the foreseeable future. The development of methods to mitigate carbon dioxide emission into the atmosphere is equally important. Hence, extensive research has been carried out on the development of cost-effective technologies for carbon dioxide capture and techniques to establish hydrogen economy. Hydrogen is a clean energy fuel with a very high specific energy content of about 120MJ/kg and an energy density of 10Wh/kg. However, its potential is limited by the lack of environment-friendly production methods and a suitable storage medium. Conventional hydrogen production methods such as Steam-methane-reformation and Coal-gasification were modified by the inclusion of NaOH. The modified methods are thermodynamically more favorable and can be regarded as near-zero emission production routes. Further, suitable catalysts were employed to accelerate the proposed NaOH-assisted reactions and a relation between reaction yield and catalyst size has been established. A 1:1:1 molar mixture of LiAlH 4, NaNH2 and MgH2 were investigated as a potential hydrogen storage medium. The hydrogen desorption mechanism was explored using in-situ XRD and Raman Spectroscopy. Mesoporous metal oxides were assessed for CO2 capture at both power and non-power sectors. A 96.96% of mesoporous MgO (325 mesh size, surface area = 95.08 ± 1.5 m2/g) was converted to MgCO 3 at 350°C and 10 bars CO2. But the absorption capacity of 1h ball milled zinc oxide was low, 0.198 gCO2 /gZnO at 75°C and 10 bars CO2. Interestingly, 57% mass conversion of Fe and Fe 3O4 mixture to FeCO3 was observed at 200°C and 10 bars CO2. MgO, ZnO and Fe3O4 could be completely regenerated at 550°C, 250°C and 350°C respectively. Furthermore, the possible retrofit of MgO and a mixture of Fe and Fe3O 4 to a 300 MWe coal-fired power plant and iron making industry were also evaluated.

Development of a surface-enhanced raman spectroscopy method for the detection of benzodiazepines in urine

Benzodiazepines are among the most prescribed compounds for anti-anxiety and are present in many toxicological screens. These drugs are also prominent in the commission of drug facilitated sexual assaults due their effects on the central nervous system. Due to their potency, a low dose of these compounds is often administered to victims; therefore, the target detection limit for these compounds in biological samples is 10 ng/mL. Currently these compounds are predominantly analyzed using immunoassay techniques; however more specific screening methods are needed. ^ The goal of this dissertation was to develop a rapid, specific screening technique for benzodiazepines in urine samples utilizing surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS), which has previously been shown be capable of to detect trace quantities of pharmaceutical compounds in aqueous solutions. Surface enhanced Raman spectroscopy has the advantage of overcoming the low sensitivity and fluorescence effects seen with conventional Raman spectroscopy. The spectra are obtained by applying an analyte onto a SERS-active metal substrate such as colloidal metal particles. SERS signals can be further increased with the addition of aggregate solutions. These agents cause the nanoparticles to amass and form hot-spots which increase the signal intensity. ^ In this work, the colloidal particles are spherical gold nanoparticles in aqueous solution with an average size of approximately 30 nm. The optimum aggregating agent for the detection of benzodiazepines was determined to be 16.7 mM MgCl2, providing the highest signal intensities at the lowest drug concentrations with limits of detection between 0.5 and 127 ng/mL. A supported liquid extraction technique was utilized as a rapid clean extraction for benzodiazepines from urine at a pH of 5.0, allowing for clean extraction with limits of detection between 6 and 640 ng/mL. It was shown that at this pH other drugs that are prevalent in urine samples can be removed providing the selective detection of the benzodiazepine of interest. ^ This technique has been shown to provide rapid (less than twenty minutes), sensitive, and specific detection of benzodiazepines at low concentrations in urine. It provides the forensic community with a sensitive and specific screening technique for the detection of benzodiazepines in drug facilitated assault cases.^

Development of a Surface-Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy Method for the Detection of Benzodiazepines in Urine

Benzodiazepines are among the most prescribed compounds for anti-anxiety and are present in many toxicological screens. These drugs are also prominent in the commission of drug facilitated sexual assaults due their effects on the central nervous system. Due to their potency, a low dose of these compounds is often administered to victims; therefore, the target detection limit for these compounds in biological samples is 10 ng/mL. Currently these compounds are predominantly analyzed using immunoassay techniques; however more specific screening methods are needed. The goal of this dissertation was to develop a rapid, specific screening technique for benzodiazepines in urine samples utilizing surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS), which has previously been shown be capable of to detect trace quantities of pharmaceutical compounds in aqueous solutions. Surface enhanced Raman spectroscopy has the advantage of overcoming the low sensitivity and fluorescence effects seen with conventional Raman spectroscopy. The spectra are obtained by applying an analyte onto a SERS-active metal substrate such as colloidal metal particles. SERS signals can be further increased with the addition of aggregate solutions. These agents cause the nanoparticles to amass and form hot-spots which increase the signal intensity. In this work, the colloidal particles are spherical gold nanoparticles in aqueous solution with an average size of approximately 30 nm. The optimum aggregating agent for the detection of benzodiazepines was determined to be 16.7 mM MgCl2, providing the highest signal intensities at the lowest drug concentrations with limits of detection between 0.5 and 127 ng/mL. A supported liquid extraction technique was utilized as a rapid clean extraction for benzodiazepines from urine at a pH of 5.0, allowing for clean extraction with limits of detection between 6 and 640 ng/mL. It was shown that at this pH other drugs that are prevalent in urine samples can be removed providing the selective detection of the benzodiazepine of interest. This technique has been shown to provide rapid (less than twenty minutes), sensitive, and specific detection of benzodiazepines at low concentrations in urine. It provides the forensic community with a sensitive and specific screening technique for the detection of benzodiazepines in drug facilitated assault cases.

Development of Metal–Organic Frameworks for Catalysis : Designing Functional and Porous Crystals

Metal–organic frameworks, or MOFs, have emerged as a new class of porous materials made by linking metal and organic units. The easy preparation, structural and functional tunability, ultrahigh porosity, and enormous surface areas of MOFs have led to them becoming one of the fastest growing fields in chemistry. MOFs have potential applications in numerous areas such as clean energy, adsorption and separation processes, biomedicine, and sensing. One of the most promising areas of research with MOFs is heterogeneous catalysis. This thesis describes the design and synthesis of new, carboxylate-based MOFs for use as catalysts. These materials have been characterized using diffraction, spectroscopy, adsorption, and imaging techniques. The thesis has focused on preparing highly-stable MOFs for catalysis, using post-synthetic methods to modify the properties of these crystals, and applying a combination of characterization techniques to probe these complex materials. In the first part of this thesis, several new vanadium MOFs have been presented. The synthesis of MIL-88B(V), MIL-101(V), and MIL-47 were studied using ex situ techniques to gain insight into the synthesis–structure relationships. The properties of these materials have also been studied. In the second part, the use of MOFs as supports for metallic nanoparticles has been investigated. These materials, Pd@MIL-101–NH2(Cr) and Pd@MIL-88B–NH2(Cr), were used as catalysts for Suzuki–Miyaura and oxidation reactions, respectively. The effect of the base on the catalytic activity, crystallinity, porosity, and palladium distribution of Pd@MIL-101–NH2(Cr) was studied. In the final part, the introduction of transition-metal complexes into MOFs through different synthesis routes has been described. A ruthenium complex was grafted onto an aluminium MOF, MOF-253, and an iridium metallolinker was introduced into a zirconium MOF, UiO-68–2CH3. These materials were used as catalysts for alcohol oxidation and allylic alcohol isomerization, respectively.

A Simple Model Describes Development of Early Peaks in Oomycete Zoospore Inoculum Detected in Southern UK Outdoors Horticultural Reservoirs

The numbers of water-borne oomycete propagules in outdoor reservoirs used in horticultural nurseries within the UK are investigated in this study. Water samples were recovered from 11 different horticultural nurseries in the southern UK during Jan-May in two ‘cool’ years (2010.and 2013; winter temperatures 2.0 and 0.4oC below UK Met Office 30 year winter average respectively) and two ‘warm’ years (2008 and 2012; winter temperatures 1.2 and 0.9oC above UK Met Office 30 year winter average respectively). Samples were analysed for total number of oomycete colony forming units (CFU), predominantly members of the families Saprolegniaceae and Pythiaceae, and these were combined to give monthly mean counts. The numbers of CFU were investigated with respect to prevailing climate in the region: mean monthly air temperatures calculated by using daily observations from the nearest climatological station. The investigations show that the number of CFU during spring can be explained by a linear first-order equation and a statistically significant r2 value of 0.66 with the simple relationship: [CFU] = a(T-Tb )-b, where a is the rate of inoculum development with temperature T, and b is the baseload population at temperatures below Tb. Despite the majority of oomycete CFU detected being non-phytopathogenic members of the Saprolegniaceae, total oomycete CFU counts are still of considerable value as indicators of irrigation water treatment efficacy and cleanliness of storage tanks. The presence/absence of Pythium spp. was also determined for all samples tested, and Pythium CFU were found to be present in the majority, the exceptions all being particularly cold months (January and February 2010 and January 2008). A simple scenario study (+2 deg C) suggests that abundance of water-borne oomycetes during spring could be affected by increased temperatures due to climate change.

Considering climate change in the development of marine protected areas

Marine ecosystems are facing a diverse range of threats, including climate change, prompting international efforts to safeguard marine biodiversity through the use of spatial management measures. Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) have been implemented as a conservation tool throughout the world, but their usefulness and effectiveness is strongly related to climate change. However, few MPA programmes have directly considered climate change in the design, management or monitoring of an MPA network. Under international obligations, EU, UK and national targets, Scotland has developed an MPA network that aims to protect marine biodiversity and contribute to the vision of a clean, healthy and productive marine environment. This is the first study to critically analyse the Scottish MPA process and highlight areas which may be improved upon in further iterations of the network in the context of climate change. Initially, a critical review of the Scottish MPA process considered how ecological principles for MPA network design were incorporated into the process, how stakeholder perceptions were considered and crucially what consideration was given to the influence of climate change on the eventual effectiveness of the network. The results indicated that to make a meaningful contribution to marine biodiversity protection for Europe the Scottish MPA network should: i) fully adopt best practice ecological principles ii) ensure effective protection and iii) explicitly consider climate change in the management, monitoring and future iterations of the network. However, this review also highlighted the difficulties of incorporating considerations of climate change into an already complex process. A series of international case studies from British Columbia, Canada; central California, USA; the Great Barrier Reef, Australia and the Hauraki Gulf, New Zealand, were then conducted to investigate perceptions of how climate change has been considered in the design, implementation, management and monitoring of MPAs. The key lessons from this study included: i) strictly protected marine reserves are considered essential for climate change resilience and will be necessary as scientific reference sites to understand climate change effects ii) adaptive management of MPA networks is important but hard to implement iii) strictly protected reserves managed as ecosystems are the best option for an uncertain future. This work provides new insights into the policy and practical challenges MPA managers face under climate change scenarios. Based on the Scottish and international studies, the need to facilitate clear communication between academics, policy makers and stakeholders was recognised in order to progress MPA policy delivery and to ensure decisions were jointly formed and acceptable. A Delphi technique was used to develop a series of recommendations for considering climate change in Scotland’s MPA process. The Delphi participant panel was selected for their knowledge of the Scottish MPA process and included stakeholders, policy makers and academics with expertise in MPA research. The results from the first round of the Delphi technique suggested that differing views of success would likely influence opinions regarding required management of MPAs, and in turn, the data requirements to support management action decisions. The second round of the Delphi technique explored this further and indicated that there was a fundamental dichotomy in panellists’ views of a successful MPA network depending upon whether they believed the MPAs should be strictly protected or allow for sustainable use. A third, focus group round of the Delphi Technique developed a feature-based management scenario matrix to aid in deciding upon management actions in light of changes occurring in the MPA network. This thesis highlights that if the Scottish MPA network is to fulfil objectives of conservation and restoration, the implications of climate change for the design, management and monitoring of the network must be considered. In particular, there needs to be a greater focus on: i) incorporating ecological principles that directly address climate change ii) effective protection that builds resilience of the marine and linked social environment iii) developing a focused, strong and adaptable monitoring framework iv) ensuring mechanisms for adaptive management.

Development of new analytical procedures of isotope geochemistry by mass spectrometry. Application to the study of high-pressure metamorphic rocks from the Iberian Massif

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Development of a framework to create plugins in Android Apps

The present work aims to allow developers to implement small features on a certain Android application in a fast and easy manner, as well as provide their users to install them ondemand, i.e., they can install the ones they are interested in. These small packages of features are called plugins, and the chosen development language to develop these in was JavaScript. In order to achieve that, an Android framework was developed that enables the host application to install, manage and run these plugins at runtime. This framework was designed to have a very clean and almost readable API, which allowed for better code organization and maintainability. The implementation used the Google’s engine “V8” to interpret the JavaScript code and through a set of JNI calls made that code call certain Android methods previously registered in the runtime. In order to test the framework, it was integrated with the client’s communication application RCS+ using two plugins developed alongside the framework. Although these plugins had only the more common requirements, they were proven to work successfully as intended. Concluding, the framework although successful made it clear that this kind of development through a non-native API has its set of difficulties especially regarding the implementation of complex features.

Development of a thermochemical/biological process to convert waste biomass into new resources

The increasing attention to environmental issues of recent times encourages us to find new methods for the production of energy from renewable sources, and to improve existing ones, increasing their energy yield. Most of the waste and agricultural residues, with a high content of lignin and non-hydrolysable polymers, cannot be effectively transformed into biofuels with existing technology. The purpose of the study was to develop a new thermochemical/ biological process (named Py-AD) for the valorization of scarcely biodegradable substances. A complete continuous prototype was design built and run for 1 year. This consists into a slow pyrolysis system coupled with two sequential digesters and showed to produce a clean pyrobiogas (a biogas with significant amount of C2-C3 hydrocarbons and residual CO/H2), biochar and bio-oil. Py-AD yielded 31.7% w/w biochar 32.5% w/w oil and 24.8% w/w pyrobiogas. The oil condensate obtained was fractionated in its aqueous and organic fraction (87% and 13% respectively). Subsequently, the anaerobic digestion of aqueous fraction was tested in a UASB reactor, for 180 days, in increasing organic loading rate (OLR). The maximum convertible concentration without undergoing instability phenomena and with complete degradation of pyrogenic chemicals was 1.25 gCOD L digester-1 d-1. The final yield of biomethane was equal to 40% of the theoretical yield and with a noticeable additional production equal to 20% of volatile fatty acids. The final results confirm that anaerobic digestion can be used as a useful tool for cleaning of slow pyrolysis products (both gas and condensable fraction) and the obtaining of relatively clean pyrobiogas that could be directly used in internal combustion engine.