The waste products acid mine drainage formed during coal mining and fly ash from coal burning power generation, pose substantial environmental and economic problems for South Africa. Eskom has developed a remediation system employing alkaline fly ash to neutralize and precipitate heavy metals from toxic acidic acid mine drainage streams. The aim of this study was to assess the microbial diversity in and microbial impact on this remediation system.

The research presented in this Thesis aims at defining the strengths and weaknesses of an Improved 1D/1D model when compared with a more accurate 1D/2D model. Although both coupled-models (sewer/surface) solve the St.\ Venant equations in both layers, the latter uses a higher approximation (2D two-dimensional) on the surface layer. Consequently, the 1D/1D model is computationally more efficient when compared to the 1D/2D model, however there is some compromise with the overall accuracy. The hypothesis is that "The inundation extent of urban flooding can be reproduced by 1D/1D models in good agreement with the 1D/2D models if the results are kept within certain limits of resolution and under certain conditions". The Thesis starts by investigating ways of improving an existing 1D/1D model to rival the more accurate 1D/2D model. Parts of the 1D/1D model code are changed and new algorithms and routines implemented. An innovative GIS tool translates the 1D output-results into 2D flood-inundation-maps enabling a thorough comparison between the two models. The methodology assures the set-up of two equivalent models, which includes a novel algorithm for calibrating the 1D/1D model vs.\ the 1D/2D model results. Developments are tested in two distinctly different case studies of areas prone to flooding. The conclusion is that the 1D/1D model is able to simulate flooding in good agreement with the 1D/2D model; however, it is found that features such as topography, density of the urbanised areas and rainfall distribution may affect the agreement between both models. The work presented herein is a step forward in understanding the modelling capabilities of the analysed coupled-models, and to some extent may be extrapolated to other models. Research is growing in urban flooding and this work may well prove to be a strong foundation basis for future research.

Changsha city in Hunan province, China. Place: Changsha Center Hospital, Hunan province. City Area: 11,819 square kilometers City population: 714.66 million   I watched the whole process of chest drainage surgery, introduced by Yang Jicheng, who is a thoracic surgeon attending doctor at this capital. During the field research in China, I also had research opportunity of chest drainage management, mostly performed by nurses, where I found out lots of design opportunities about the Chong canister, which was the most popular chest drainage canister used all over the  China Then I went back to Umea, Sweden, met Fredrik Homner who is a thoracic surgery doctor working in Norrlands University Hospital for almost 30 years. I told him what I saw in China and we exchanged lots of opinion about chest drainage. I realized that Chinese chest drainage patients were suffering unnecessary pain from outmoded equipment, which in Sweden they had already updated since 20 years ago. Whit help of Fredrik Holmner, I had opportunity to watch the whole process of pulmonary resection and endoscope technical, the focus of this process was the insertion of chest drainage tube at the end of this 5 hours surgery. After I had seen so many materials related to chest drainage, I found out my design focus, which was the Maquet Oasis Drain,  that had been recognized as the most advanced chest drainage equipment in the world and had been widely used in Europe and United States.

No description available.

Nous étudions la stabilisation de mousses de décontamination nucléaire par des particules minérales hydrophiles et hydrophobes. La particule hydrophobe est une silice colloïdale greffée, et semble permettre de modifier les propriétés viscoélastiques d'une interface modèle eau-air. Les particules hydrophiles sont des agglomérats de silice pyrogénée, qui confèrent aux solutions moussantes un comportement rhéologique thixotrope et à seuil. Les mousses résultantes conservent jusqu'à 75 % de leur liquide initial sur plusieurs heures. Nous expliquons ce drainage particulier par l'effet de confinement, étudié dans un milieu poreux rigide et dans une mousse aux interfaces mobiles et au diamètre de bulle contrôlé. Un seuil de percolation apparaît dans le milieu poreux, mais disparaît dans la mousse du fait de la déformabilité des interfaces. Le liquide y est retenu dans les agglomérats piégés dans les bords de Plateau et les nœuds. L'ensemble des résultats a fait l'objet d'un dépôt de brevet / This study aims to highlight the stabilization of nuclear decontamination foam by hydrophilic and hydrophobic mineral particles. Hydrophobic particles consist of homogeneously-grafted colloidal silica, and we have examined their ability to make an ideal gas-liquid interface viscoelastic. Hydrophilic particles are micrometric agglomerates of fumed silica, which turn foaming solutions into thixotropic yield-stress materials. The resulting foams can retain up to 75 % of their initial liquid during several hours. These remarkable drainage kinetics are explained with regards to the confining of agglomerates, studied both in a specifically-developed rigid porous media and in a foam with mobile interfaces and size-controlled bubbles. A percolation threshold appears in the porous media but can not take place in the foam owing to the interfaces deformability. Liquid is retained in the porous agglomerates trapped within the foam channels. The whole results have been patented

There was a major discharge into Restronguet Creek, south-west Cornwall in January 1992 of metalled acidic mine water drainage from the recently closed Wheal Jane tin mine. Shortly after this discharge a post-impact study using the responses of Recent benthic foraminifera as indicators of metal pollution was carried out on this Creek which had not been investigated previously. Because of a lack of pre-discharge foraminiferal data from Restronguet Creek, other estuaries, which previously drained metal mining regions, have been sampled in order to determine the background levels in foraminiferal populations. These estuaries, Fowey (Cornwall), Avon and Erme (south-west Devon) have not been investigated previously. The research programme included reconnaissance sampling of the estuaries Looe, Yealm, Kingsbridge, Axe and Carrick Roads (south-west England), primarilly to determine the geographical distribution of the agglutinated species. In all, 651 samples were taken for micropalaeontological and laser analysis from which an estimated 260,000 tests have been picked and some 70 species identified. A further 395 samples were taken for metal, carbon, nitrogen, sediment grain size and mineralogical analysis. The results of this research show changes over time with the colonisation of barren stations, increased abundance of living individuals, reduced proportions of deformed tests, less severe acid dissolution of the test walls and a seasonal species distribution which is similar to that of the Fowey Estuary. Low diversity is unchanged and the agglutinating foraminifera, which form distinct assembage zones in the control estuaries, remain absent from Restronguet Creek. The data provided by the short cores from Restronguet Creek suggest that the 1992 discharge does not account for the absence of these species. During the period of investigation the sediment-bound metals in terms of the concentrations have, in general, increased but the river water quality entering the Creek has improved in terms of metals and acidity. This suggests that the foraminifera are more directly influenced by metals in solution and that tangible benefits have been gained from the water quality improvement programme inaugurated by the Environment Agency.

A dissertation submitted to the Faculty of Science, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, in fulfilment of requirements for the degree of Master of Science. 2014. / Sugar cane bagasse and switch grass were used to investigate their potential in the remediation (decreasing metal ion concentration and increasing pH) of Acid Mine Drainage (AMD) and the possibility that the AMD residue sludge containing cellulose could be further hydrolysed using a commercial cellulase enzyme system to produce glucose for bioprocesses. In general both the feedstocks series appeared to increase pH and reduce dissolved iron concentration after being incubated with AMD for a period of 14 weeks at room temperature. The milled switch grass was shown to have a greater remediating effect on AMD, raising the pH from 2.11 to 5.46, and decreasing iron concentration from 500mg/l to 174mg/l, a decrease of 62%. The sugar cane bagasse was shown to have the least remedial effect, increasing pH from 2.11 to 2.38, and only reducing iron concentration by 30%. The 2‐5cm switch grass raised the pH from 2.11 to 3.86, and the iron concentration was reduced from 500mg/l to 283mg/l, a 42% reduction. The milled grass series was chosen for further enzymatic hydrolysis. The milling reduced the size of the switch grass and destroyed the cell structure making it more accessible to AMD treatment. This also allowed the enzyme in the hydrolysis to penetrate to the fibres and reach the sugar oligomers. The sludge of the AMD treated switch grass was incubated with cellulases enzymes for 24 hours at 50oC, producing glucose concentration of up to 4,86mg/ml.

A research report submitted to the Faculty of Science, University of the Witwatersrand in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Masters (MSc. by Course work and Research Report) 30th September, 2015 / Acid Mine Drainage (AMD) refers to the seepage or runoff of acidic water from abandoned mines into the surrounding environment. Acid mine drainage is considered a serious long term environmental threat associated with mining. This study was conducted on the Varkenslaagte canal or stream which flows from north to south within the AngloGold Ashanti West Wits gold mining operation, 75 km west of Johannesburg, and receives AMD from tailings storage facilities (TSFs) located on both the northern aspect and the western aspect of the catchment. On the Varkenslaagte, 17 reed beds were planted between 1-12-2011 and 12-9-2012, in a series of shallow excavated depressions. This study was conducted in 2013 and 2014, and aimed to ascertain: (i) whether there is any temporal difference (autumn – end of the rainy season, versus winter – mid-dry season, for 2013 and 2014 combined) in selected fresh-water quality parameters and concentrations of AMD contaminants in the flowing waters in the engineered reed beds; - this was observed, as higher concentrations were recorded in winter than in autumn, for some of the selected water quality parameters, in both survey years; (ii) to determine if vertical changes exist in the elements down the sediment profile from the surface to a depth of approximately half a metre; - conspicuous vertical changes were not evident; and also; (iii) to provide a baseline for monitoring the post clean-up state of the upper Varkenslaagte, and conclude whether the reed bed system is retaining AMD contaminants (major ions, trace and major elements). Chemical variations in water and sediment samples were measured in situ in April/May 2013 and July 2014, and water samples and sediment cores collected for laboratory analyses. Water samples were collected from three points (inflow, middle and outflow) at each of 15 reed beds (RBs, numbered RB 1 -15) in receipt of AMD from two directions (downstream and laterally from TSFs on the northern and western aspects). Ion Chromatography was used to detect chloride (Cl-) and sulphate (SO42-), Inductively Coupled Plasma Optical Emission Spectroscopy (ICP-OES) and Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry (ICP-MS) were used to identify major and trace elements; iron (Fe), magnesium (Mg), manganese (Mn), potassium (K), cobalt (Co), nickel (Ni), lead (Pb), copper (Cu) and zinc (Zn) in the water samples whereas X-Ray Fluorescence (XRF) analysis for elements was conducted on surface sediments (0-2cm; additional analyses of sediment core samples at depths 2-5 cm, 5-10 cm, 10-20 cm and 20 -30 cm were analyzed but were not considered further). The water in the reed beds was moderately acidic to within the target range. It ranged from pH 5.17 to 6.51 in April, 2014 (approaching the end of the wet season) (P < 0.05) (P = 0.0001) to slightly higher values of pH 5.45 to 6.82 in July, 2014 (mid-dry season) (P = 0.0053). Marginal acidity is above pH 6. A pH of 6.5 – 7.5 is within the target water quality range (TWQR) on the Highveld. High electrical conductivity (EC) values were found, ranging from 3500 – 4600 μs/cm in April and 2600 – 5500 μs/cm in July, though EC values can be higher on much of the South African gold mining Highveld. Lateral influx of AMD from the western TSFs was visually observed into two of the southernmost Varkenslaagte stream reed beds (at RBs13 and 15) during both April and July sampling. In 2014, the Varkenslaagte was still flowing from reed bed to reed bed, although very slowly, similar to 2013. Chloride, sulphate and metal concentrations were high relative to target water quality ranges in most of the reed beds in during April and July, 2014. Although higher concentrations in the sediment suggest that the reed beds are effective in capturing and retaining contaminants in sediment and root mass, the concentrations in the water in reed beds 1-15 still exceeded the target water quality ranges for aquatic ecosystems in South Africa (DWAF, 1996) and the World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines for drinking water quality (WHO, 2004). However use of the water from the Varkenslaagte by humans and livestock is prohibited by the Department of Water and Environmental Affairs, and the National Nuclear Regulator. The bar charts comparing 2013 and 2014 selected water quality data showed that during winter/drier periods with no rains, the rate of evaporation exceeded dilution; this was observed by the slightly lower pH values recorded across the reed beds in July, 2013 and 2014, in comparison with the slight higher pH values recorded across the reed beds in May, 2013 and April, 2014. The bar charts also showed that the highest EC was recorded in the winter of 2014. It was also observed from the principal component analyses (PCAs) that EC, sulphate and pH, in combination with Mg and Fe, were responsible for most of the variation in the water quality data for the two survey years, 2013 and 2014. Following the findings from this study, it is recommended that monitoring of the site should also address whether the reed beds and other control measures that have been put in place (riparian woodlands and windmill pumps) will be adequate to control the lateral seepage from the Western TSFs at some of the southernmost reed beds.

A dissertation submitted to the Faculty of Science, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science WITS University, Johannesburg, 2013 / Occurring parallel to the developments in imprinting technology are magnetic materials which are being applied increasingly in environmental remediation, medicine, biotechnology and many other fields. Combining the imprinting effects of the polymer and nano magnetic particles yields composite materials which are both selective to the template and magneto responsive for easy polymer removal from aqueous solutions. In this study, magnetic ion imprinted polymers with high recognition for uranyl ion (UO2 2+) in the presence of competing ions were synthesized by bulk and precipitation polymerizations. The uranyl template was removed from the magnetic polymer matric by 1M HCl and 1M NaHCO3 leachants to form cavities which were complimentary in shape and size to the template. Full characterization of the magnetite and magnetic polymers was achieved by use of the following characterization techniques: Raman spectroscopy (RS), Transmission electron microscopy (TEM), Energy dispersive spectrometry (EDS), Powder X-ray diffraction (PXRD) analysis, Brunauer, Emmett and Teller (BET) analysis, Ultraviolet visible (UV-vis) spectroscopy, Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR), Thermo-gravimetric analysis (TGA), Carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen and sulphur (CHNS) analysis, Diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (DRS) and Atomic force microscopy (AFM). Parameters which were optimized included sample pH, which gave an optimum value of 4. Magnetic IIP and NIP amounts which gave maximum adsorption capacities were found to be 50 mg for both of these adsorbents. The optimum contact time was found to be 45 minutes. The performance of all magnetic ion imprinted polymers (IIPs) was expectedly superior to that of the corresponding non imprinted polymers (NIPs) in all adsorption studies. The first rate constant (k1) and correlation coefficient (R2) values evaluated for the pseudo first order were found to be between 0.048-0.093 min-1 and 0.602-0.991 min-1, respectively. For the pseudo second order, second rate constant (k2) and correlation coefficient (R2) were found to be between 0.273- 0.678 and 0.9811-0.9992, respectively. The selectivity order observed was as follows: UO2 2+ > Fe3+ > Pb2+ > Ni2+ > Mg2+. The magnetic polymers selective to Cr(VI) were also synthesized and were leached with HCl to remove the template. The synthesized Cr(VI) magnetic polymers, the optimum pH obtained was 4 for both the magnetic IIP and the corresponding NIP. The amount of the adsorbent which gave the maximum adsorption was determined to be 20 and 65 mg for the magnetic IIP and NIP, respectively. A Cr(VI) concentration which was adsorbed maximally was from 5 mg L-1 which was therefore taken as the optimum. The maximum adsorption capacities for the magnetic polymers were 6.20 and 1.87 mg g-1 for the magnetic IIP and NIP, respectively. The optimum time for the adsorption of the Cr(VI) analyte was determined as 40 minutes. Investigation of the order of selectivity of anions followed the trend: Cr2O7 2- SO4 2- F- NO3- -.

A dissertation is submitted as MSc research project in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science in the School of Geography, Archaeology and Environmental Studies. July 2016. / A major cause of environmental problems, in the vicinity of mine tailings in and around Johannesburg, is Acid Mine Drainage (AMD). In most research, engineered wetlands are used to ameliorate AMD with the use of vegetation to remove or extract heavy metals from the soil (i.e. phytoremediation). Phytoremediation has been defined as a technology that uses plants to extract or immobilize contaminants in soils and waters (Torresdey, 2007). The aim of this study was to assess and quantify the mass pool size of contaminants (macronutrients, micronutrients, non-essential trace elements) within and between a subset of paddocks from various compartments including sediments, aboveground biomass (shoots –stems and leaves), and belowground biomass (roots and rhizomes) of the two wetland plant species present (P. australis and S. corymbosus ). Analyses were done on the wetland paddocks in situ and ex situ applying different methods, water sample metal cations were analysed by ICP-MS and the major anion analysis by chromatography and Ion Chromatography (IC). The sediment and plant samples were subject to X-Ray fluorescence (XRF) analyses of major elements and trace elements. Although analysis was undertaken for numerous trace and metal elements, only a few macronutrients, micronutrients, and non-essential elements with significant importance to the West Wits Mining Operation were selected for this study. The stream water test strips yielded poor results for this extremely contaminated plume receiving environment this suggests that in this system they are not a useful substitute for conventional laboratory analyses. Of the elements tested, only S showed significant differences in concentrations in plants between paddocks, with the highest concentrations and mass in the downstream paddocks ww6 and ww7. These paddocks also had the greatest masses of S in sediments, and water concentrations were also highest in paddocks ww4, ww6 and ww7. P. australis accumulated highest elemental mass than S. corymbosus, with the highest Zn mass of 93%. P. australis accumulated double the mass of U, Cu, Cl, Ca. In both plants, the roots consistently had highest elemental concentration with sequence often as follows roots> shoots> rhizomes. Sediment element mass accumulation of most tested elements significantly increased with depth, except for Zn and U, which decreased with depth. There are few significant differences in the mass distribution of the elements analysed between paddocks, which is assumed to reflect either the heterogeneity in the underlying sediments following construction of the wetlands, or lateral inputs into the system as seepage from other TSFs. Key words: AMD, Wetland, Varkenslaagte Canal, West Wits Mining Operation, metals, sediment, S. corymbosus, P. australis, ICP-MS, XRF. / LG2017