Reprocessing and reuse of single-use medical devices used during hemodynamic procedures in Brazil: A widespread and largely overlooked problem

Background. Several medical devices used during hemodynamic procedures, particularly angiographic diagnostic and therapeutic cardiac catheters, are manufactured for single use only. However, reprocessing and reuse of these devices has been reported, to determine the frequency of reuse and reprocessing of single-use medical devices used during hemodynamic procedures in Brazil and to evaluate how reprocessing is performed. Design. National survey, conducted from December 1999 to July 2001. Methods. Most of the institutions affiliated with the Brazilian Society of Hemodynamic and Interventional Cardiology were surveyed by use of a questionnaire sent in the mail. Results. The questionnaire response rate was 50% (119 of 240 institutions). Of the 119 institutions that responded, 116 (97%) reported reuse of single-use devices used during hemodynamic procedures, and only 26 (22%) reported use of a standardized reprocessing protocol. Cleaning, flushing, rinsing, drying, sterilizing and packaging methods varied greatly and were mostly inadequate. Criteria for discarding reused devices varied widely. Of the 119 institutions that responded, 80 (67%) reported having a surveillance system for adverse events associated with the reuse of medical devices, although most of these institutions did not routinely review the data, and only 38 (32%) described a training program for the personnel who reprocessed single-use devices. Conclusions. The reuse of single-use devices used during hemodynamic procedures was very frequent in hospitals in Brazil. Basic guidance on how to reuse and reprocess single-use medical devices is urgently needed, because, despite the lack of studies to support reusing and reprocessing single-use medical devices, such devices are necessary in limited-resource areas in which these practices are current.

Analysis of constructed wetland performance for irrigation reuse

Most of the wastewater treatment systems in small rural communities of the Cova da Beira region (Portugal) consist of constructed wetlands (CW) with horizontal subsurface flow (HSSF). It is believed that those systems allow the compliance of discharge standards as well as the production of final effluents with suitability for reuse. Results obtained in a nine-month campaign in an HSSF bed pointed out that COD and TSS removal were lower than expected. A discrete sampling also showed that removal of TC, FC and HE was not enough to fulfill international irrigation goals. However, the bed had a very good response to variation of incoming nitrogen loads presenting high removal of nitrogen forms. A good correlation between mass load and mass removal rate was observed for BOD5, COD, TN, NH4-N, TP and TSS, which shows a satisfactory response of the bed to the variable incoming loads. The entrance of excessive loads of organic matter and solids contributed for the decrease of the effective volume for pollutant uptake and therefore, may have negatively influenced the treatment capability. Primary treatment should be improved in order to decrease the variation of incoming organic and solid loads and to improve the removal of COD, solids and pathogenic. The final effluent presented good physical-chemical quality to be reused for irrigation, which is the most likely application in the area.

Cork industry wastewater characterization assessment of the biodegradability, reuse and of the relationship between BOD, COD and tannins with TOC

Cork processing involves a boiling step to make the cork softer, which consumes a high volume of water and generates a wastewater with a high organic content, rich in tannins. An assessment of the final wastewater characteristics and of the boiling water composition along the boiling process was performed. The parameters studied were pH, color, total organic carbon (TOC), chemical and biochemical oxygen demands (COD, BOD5, BOD20), total suspended solids (TSS), total phenols and tannins (TP, TT). It was observed that the water solutes extraction power is significantly reduced for higher quantities of cork processed. Valid relationships between parameters were established not only envisaging wastewater characterization but also to provide an important tool for wastewater monitoring and for process control/optimization. Boiling water biodegradability presented decreasing values with the increase of cork processed and for the final wastewater its value is always lower than 0.5, indicating that these wastewaters are very difficult to treat by biological processes. The biodegradability was associated with the increase of tannin content that can rise up to 0.7 g/L. These compounds can be used by other industries when concentrated and the clarified wastewater can be reused, which is a potential asset in this wastewater treatment.

A sustainable approach to the reuse of student - centered learning scenarios

Proceedings of EULEARN09 - Intenational Conference and New Learning Technologies, Barcelona, Spain, 6-8 July

Use and reuse of SPE disks for the determination of pyrethroids in water by GC-ECD

Seven pyrethroids (bifenthrin, fenpropathrin, k-cyhalothrin, permethrin, a-cypermethrin, fenvalerate, and deltamethrin) were extracted from water using C18 solid-phase extraction disks, followed by gas chromatography with an electron capture detector (GC-ECD) analysis. The limits of detection in water samples ranged from 0.5 ng L-1 (fenpropathrin) to 110 ng L- 1 (permethrin), applying the calibration graph. The effects of different numbers of (re)utilizations of the same disks (up to four times with several concentrations) on the recoveries of the pyrethroids were considered. The recoveries were all between 70 and 120% after four utilizations of the same disk. There was no difference between these recoveries at a confidence level of 95%.

A semantic approach for learning objects repositories with knowledge reuse

In this paper we discuss how the inclusion of semantic functionalities in a Learning Objects Repository allows a better characterization of the learning materials enclosed and improves their retrieval through the adoption of some query expansion strategies. Thus, we started to regard the use of ontologies to automatically suggest additional concepts when users are filling some metadata fields and add new terms to the ones initially provided when users specify the keywords with interest in a query. Dealing with different domain areas and having considered impractical the development of many different ontologies, we adopted some strategies for reusing ontologies in order to have the knowledge necessary in our institutional repository. In this paper we make a review of the area of knowledge reuse and discuss our approach.

An integrated recycling approach for GFRP pultrusion wastes: recycling and reuse assessment into new composite materials using Fuzzy Boolean Nets

In this study, efforts were made in order to put forward an integrated recycling approach for the thermoset based glass fibre reinforced polymer (GPRP) rejects derived from the pultrusion manufacturing industry. Both the recycling process and the development of a new cost-effective end-use application for the recyclates were considered. For this purpose, i) among the several available recycling techniques for thermoset based composite materials, the most suitable one for the envisaged application was selected (mechanical recycling); and ii) an experimental work was carried out in order to assess the added-value of the obtained recyclates as aggregates and reinforcement replacements into concrete-polymer composite materials. Potential recycling solution was assessed by mechanical behaviour of resultant GFRP waste modified concrete-polymer composites with regard to unmodified materials. In the mix design process of the new GFRP waste based composite material, the recyclate content and size grade, and the effect of the incorporation of an adhesion promoter were considered as material factors and systematically tested between reasonable ranges. The optimization process of the modified formulations was supported by the Fuzzy Boolean Nets methodology, which allowed finding the best balance between material parameters that maximizes both flexural and compressive strengths of final composite. Comparing to related end-use applications of GFRP wastes in cementitious based concrete materials, the proposed solution overcome some of the problems found, namely the possible incompatibilities arisen from alkalis-silica reaction and the decrease in the mechanical properties due to high water-cement ratio required to achieve the desirable workability. Obtained results were very promising towards a global cost-effective waste management solution for GFRP industrial wastes and end-of-life products that will lead to a more sustainable composite materials industry.

An experimental study on recycling and reuse of pultruded composite material wastes

Glass fibre-reinforced plastics (GFRP) have been considered inherently difficult to recycle due to both: cross-linked nature of thermoset resins, which cannot be remoulded, and complex composition of the composite itself. Presently, most of the GFRP waste is landfilled leading to negative environmental impacts and supplementary added costs. With an increasing awareness of environmental matters and the subsequent desire to save resources, recycling would convert an expensive waste disposal into a profitable reusable material. In this study, efforts were made in order to recycle grinded GFRP waste, proceeding from pultrusion production scrap, into new and sustainable composite materials. For this purpose, GFRP waste recyclates, were incorporated into polyester based mortars as fine aggregate and filler replacements at different load contents and particle size distributions. Potential recycling solution was assessed by mechanical behaviour of resultant GFRP waste modified polymer mortars. Results revealed that GFRP waste filled polymer mortars present improved flexural and compressive behavior over unmodified polyester based mortars, thus indicating the feasibility of the GFRP industrial waste reuse into concrete-polymer composite materials.

A case study undertaken recycling & reuse of glass fiber reinforced thermoset polumer wastes of composite materials industry

Glass fibre-reinforced plastics (GFRP) have been considered inherently difficult to recycle due to both: crosslinked nature of thermoset resins, which cannot be remoulded, and complex composition of the composite itself. Presently, most of the GFRP waste is landfilled leading to negative environmental impacts and supplementary added costs. With an increasing awareness of environmental matters and the subsequent desire to save resources, recycling would convert an expensive waste disposal into a profitable reusable material. In this study, efforts were made in order to recycle grinded GFRP waste, proceeding from pultrusion production scrap, into new and sustainable composite materials. For this purpose, GFRP waste recyclates, were incorporated into polyester based mortars as fine aggregate and filler replacements at different load contents and particle size distributions. Potential recycling solution was assessed by mechanical behaviour of resultant GFRP waste modified polymer mortars. Results revealed that GFRP waste filled polymer mortars present improved flexural and compressive behaviour over unmodified polyester based mortars, thus indicating the feasibility of the GFRP industrial waste reuse into concrete-polymer composite materials.

Research progress on reuse of fluid catalytic cracking waste from oil refinery in cement-based materials

Present paper present the main results obtained in the scope of an ongoing project which aims to contribute to the valorization of a waste generated by the Portuguese oil company in construction materials. This waste is an aluminosilicate with high pozzolanic reactivity. Several different technological applications had already been tested with success both in terms of properties and compliance with the corresponding standards specifications. Namely, this project results already demonstrated that this waste can be used in traditional concrete, self-compacted concrete, mortars (renders, masonry mortar, concrete repair mortars), cement main constituent as well as alkali activated binders.

Safe reuse of treated urban wastewater in Praia, Cape Verde: a case study

Dissertação para a obtenção do Grau de Mestre em Engenharia e Gestão da Água

An investigation of soil quality parameters relating to agricultural reuse and land disposal options for the management of biosolids

Sludge provides valuable nutrients to soil. Application of sludge to land is subject to a number of limitations. Its use as a soil conditioner represents a "beneficial reuse option". Primary and secondary sludge from Dublin city is treated in Ringsend treatment plant where it undergoes thermal drying. This study investigates the feasibility of land application of thermally dried biosolids (TDB) from Ringsend treatment plant.

Reuse of paths in light source animation

In this paper we extend the reuse of paths to the shot from a moving light source. In the classical algorithm new paths have to be cast from each new position of a light source. We show that we can reuse all paths for all positions, obtaining in this way a theoretical maximum speed-up equal to the average length of the shooting path