Lead is a toxic heavy metal that has been extensively used in modern society, causing widespread environmental contamination, even in isolated parts of the world. There is now overwhelming evidence associating lead exposure with wideranging health effects, including reductions in intelligence scores, hyperactivity, shortened concentration spans, poor school performance, violent/aggressive behaviour, hearing loss, delayed onset of puberty, anaemia, and in severe cases, coma and death. In recent years consensus has been reached in respect of the absence of a threshold of safety for key health effects associated with lead exposure, and the permanent and irreversible nature of many of the health and social consequences of exposure to lead. The public health problem of environmental lead exposure has been widely investigated in developed countries such as the United States of America where, since the 1970s, policies and interventions have been followed by significant reductions in blood lead levels amongst children. In developing countries, and in African countries in particular, there is a relative dearth of information on the sources, mechanisms of exposure and blood lead distributions in children, and little action has been taken to protect children against lead poisoning. This study was undertaken to determine the current distribution of blood lead concentrations, and associated risk factors, amongst selected groups of first grade school children in the South African urban settings of Cape Town, Johannesburg 7 and Kimberley, a lead mining town (Aggeneys) and two rural towns in the Northern Cape province. A further objective of the study was to compare blood lead distributions determined in the current study with the findings of similar studies undertaken prior to the introduction in 1996 of unleaded petrol in South Africa. The results show that over the past decade, blood lead concentrations amongst first grade school children have declined considerably, but that large proportions of children, especially those living or attending school in impoverished areas, continue to have intolerably high blood lead concentrations, within a range that puts them at risk of detrimental health and social outcomes. The major sources of exposure to lead in the samples studied were leaded petrol, lead-based paint used to decorate homes and schools, lead solder used in “cottage industries” and other home-based lead-related activities, as well as the transfer of lead particles from lead-related work settings into homes. Recommendations for policy and relevant interventions for the South African context are discussed.

According to the HTTP Archive, 75% of websites are using web fonts. Multiple conditions have to be met before modern web browsers like Chrome, Firefox and Safari decide to download the web fonts needed on a page. As a result, web fonts are late discovered resources that can delay the First Meaningful Paint (FMP). Improving the FMP is relevant for the web industry, particularly for performance-conscious web developers. This paper gives insight into how the resource prioritization approaches HTTP/2 Preload and HTTP/2 Server Push can be used to optimize the delivery of web fonts for first-time visitors. Five font loading strategies that use HTTP/2 Server Push and/or Preload were implemented on replicas of the landing pages from five real-world websites. The font loading strategies were evaluated against each other, and against the non-optimized version of each landing page. All the evaluated font loading strategies in this degree project improved the time it took to deliver the first web font content to the user’s screen, resulting in a faster FMP. It was also discovered that HTTP/2 Server Push, on its own, is not a more performance efficient resource prioritization approach than HTTP/2 Preload when it comes to delivering web font content to the client. Further, HTTP/2 Server Push and HTTP/2 Preload appears to be more efficient when used together, in the context of optimizing the delivery of web font content. However, all conclusions in this paper are based on the results gathered from testing the font loading strategies in an emulated environment and are yet to be confirmed on actual mobile devices with real network conditions.

La relation entre la peinture et la littérature persane était étroitement liée pendant toute l'histoire del'Iran après la conquête de l'Islam. Ce sont souvent les sujets mystiques qui dominent la littérature persane et ils se manifestent également dans la peinture par l'illustration des divans et des ouvrages soufis. C'est ainsi que la peinture persane est le grand témoin de l'approche gnostique et elle possède une dimension mystique transcendante. Les éléments et les symboles, inspirés des métaphores sublimes de la littérature soufie persane, nous orientent vers des interprétations mystiques dont on trouve la manifestation explicite dans la plupart des suppléments de la peinture persane. Les conceptions soufies se sont manifestées également dans la peinture des écoles dérivées de la peinture persane comme l'école de la peinture inde-persane et l'école de la peinture moghole. Il faut souligner que la circulation de la langue persane avait un rôle remarquable dans ce parcours. Notamment, d'une part le persan était la langue officielle de l'Inde sous le règne d'Akbar, l'empereur moghole passionnée de la culture persane, et de l'autre part les vagues d'émigrations des poètes et des peintres iraniens vers l'Inde, sous la pression des docteurs religieux safavides développaient l'influence de la culture persane dans le sous-continent indien.Les deux raisons essentielles qui préparaient la base d'un grand mouvement artistique. L'affection des rois moghols envers les confréries soufies, hérité de leur grand ancêtre Tamerlan, se manifestait par le respect qu'ils avaient pour les soufies et, en particulier, pour les Sheikh (s) naqšbandî. / Persian painting and Persian literature were closely linked during the history of Iran after the conquest of Islam. lt is often the mystical topics of Persian literature, which have an effect on the Persian painting. During the Timurid dynasty, Sufism has occupied a central place in the society of Iran. The Sufism ideology, in particular the naqsbandî beliefs, has brought a transcendent mystical dimension to the illustrations of this period of history of Persian art. We can find the explicit mystical influence of the big naqshbandî master and the last great medieval mystic, Jami, on the painting of Kamâl al-Dîn Bihzâd. Obviously, the success of Bihzâd disciples, who were under his influence, gave birth to the lndo-Persian painting in Mughal court.Moreover, Akbar (1542-1605) and his great passion for the Persian language and culture had adecisive role in the development of the Persian mystical thoughts in lndia. The Persian language became the official language of the lndian Mughal Empire du ring his reign.The devotion of Akbar for the Sufism was particularly manifested in his special respect toward naqsbandî Sheikhs. At the same time, under the religious pressure of the Safavid dynasty some of the lranians were obliged to leave their country. The big passion of Akbar in one hand and the immigration waves of lranians, especially Sufis, poets and artists to the lndia, on the other hand,prepared the society for intellectual and artistic movements.ln fact, the naqsbandî traditions and ideas have travelled from Iran to the northern lndia. Bokhara played a great role in the circulation of beliefs and ethics of the naqsbandî order between Persia and India.

Tinta pode ser conceituada como uma película ou camada de polímero utilizada para proteger, sinalizar e iluminar ou mesmo para embelezar o substrato sobre o qual ela é aplicada. Basicamente, esta mistura polimérica é formada por elementos, tais como: resinas, pigmentos, cargas, solventes e aditivos. Os resíduos e o efluente líquido gerados na produção de tintas devem ser tratados de modo que não causem contaminação de rios e das nascentes de água. A reutilização do efluente tratado é uma das possibilidades que deve ser considerada a fim de minimizar os impactos ambientais e reduzir o uso de recursos naturais. Processos de oxidação química são promissores para a degradação de compostos orgânicos tóxicos. O caminho mais eficiente para a oxidação é o ataque pelo radical hidroxila (OH), por meio do processo de oxidação avançada, POA. Um dos exemplos de POA é o que faz uso de aceleradores de feixe de elétrons, adotado por vários países para a remoção de compostos orgânicos. O objetivo deste estudo é aplicar o POA por radiação ionizante para o tratamento do efluente da fabricação de tintas para repintura automotiva, industrial e automotivo. A metodologia utilizada foi um estudo de caso, desenvolvido por meio do processamento com feixe de elétrons aplicados a esses efluentes de indústria de tintas. O estudo foi realizado em três fases. Na primeira, aplicou-se 10 kGy, 30 kGy e 50 kGy de dose absorvida; na segunda, 50 kGy, 80 kGy e 100 kGy, e, na última fase, foi aplicada nas amostras uma dose de 50 kGy e dopadas com 0,005%, 0,05% e 0,5% de peróxido de hidrogénio em volume. Os principais resultados demonstraram uma redução média de cerca de 10% da Demanda Química de Oxigênio, DQO e cerca de 25% da Demanda Bioquímica de Oxigênio, DBO. Os padrões de efluentes finais definidos pelos requisitos legais, em especial pelo Decreto Estadual 8468/1976. para o descarte do corpo no rio ou reutilização em aplicações industriais, foram atendidos. / Paint can be conceptualized as a film or a layer of polymer, to protect, to signal and to illuminate or even to embellish the substrate on which it is applied. Basically, this polymeric compound is formed by elements such as: resin, pigments, fillers, solvents, and additives. Waste and wastewater generated in the production of paint, have to be treated so they do not cause the contamination of rivers and springs water. The reuse of the treated effluent is one of the possibilities that should be considered in order to minimize the environmental impacts and to reduce the use of natural resources. Chemical oxidation processes are promising for degradation of toxic organic compounds. The most efficient path for the oxidation is the attack by hydroxyl radical (OH), and the Advanced Oxidation Process, AOP, using electron beam accelerators have been adopted by several countries for the removal of organic compounds. The aim of this study is to apply the AOP by ionizing radiation to treat the effluent from the manufacture of automotive, automotive refinish and industrial paints. The methodology used was a case study, developed through the electron beam processing of these effluents. The study was developed in three phases: in the first one it was applied 10 kGy, 30 kGy and 50 kGy of absorbed dose, in the second one, 50 kGy, 80 kGy and 100 kGy, and in the last one it was applied 50 kGy in samples and doped with 0.005%, 0.05% and 0.5% of hydrogen peroxide. The main results have shown an average reduction of about 10% of Chemical Oxygen Demand, COD and about 25% of Biochemical Oxygen Demand, BOD. The final effluent standards set by legal requirements for disposal of the body in the river or reuse in industrial application.

O presente projeto tem como objetivo contribuir para o desenvolvimento de dispositivos para monitoração de pressão dinâmica do ar. Para isso, foram produzidos filmes sensíveis a pressão baseados na detecção de concentração de oxigênio por meio de processos de emissão fotoluminescente das moléculas de Azul de Metileno (MB) e Platina Octaetilporfirina (PtOEP). Nesse sentido, foi estudado o comportamento da emissão fotoluminescente dessas moléculas em interação com o gás de oxigênio. A concentração de oxigênio (do ar) sobre superfície sensível depende da pressão dinâmica de superfície. Desta forma, monitorando a fotoluminescência dos dispositivos submetidos a diferentes concentrações de oxigênio, pode-se determinar uma relação entre a pressão pontual da superfície analisada e a intensidade de emissão fotoluminescente do filme. Os dispositivos de monitoração de pressão dinâmica são constituídos de um filme de estado sólido contendo as moléculas sensíveis. Foram utilizados como substratos hospedeiros para o Azul de Metileno e para a Octaetilporfirina de Platina, os filmes de silício poroso oxidado e Poliestireno, respectivamente. É proposto um arranjo experimental que utiliza um fluorímetro para caracterizar as amostras produzidas e uma câmara de fluxo de gases. Os dispositivos apresentaram elevada sensibilidade e evidenciaram o potencial para desenvolvimento e integração de sensores baseados no silício poroso à microeletrônica. / This project aims to contribute to the development of devices for monitoring dynamic pressure of the air. In this sense, films were produced based on pressure-sensitive detection of oxygen concentration through processes of photoluminescence emission from the molecules of methylene blue (MB) and platinum octaethylporphyrin (PtOEP). Accordingly, it was studied the behavior of the photoluminescence emission of these molecules in interaction with the oxygen gas. The concentration of oxygen (of the air composition) on the sensitive surface depends on the surface dynamic pressure. Thus, monitoring the photoluminescence of the devices under different oxygen concentrations, it can be determined a relationship between the punctual pressure of the tested surface and the photoluminescence emission intensity of the film. The devices for monitoring dynamic pressure are made of a solid state film containing the sensitive molecules. Oxidized porous silicon and polystyrene films were used as hosts for the Methylene Blue and for the Platinum Octaethylporphyrin, respectively. It was proposed an experimental setup that uses a spectrofluorophotometer and a gas flow chamber to characterize the produced samples. The devices showed high sensitivity and potential for development and integration of the sensors based on porous silicon for microelectronics.

Made available in DSpace on 2015-03-05T13:58:26Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 0 Previous issue date: 28 / Bolsa para curso e programa de Pós Graduação / Este trabalho apresenta um novo modelo de criação e alteração de mapas de normais, usando uma interface intuitiva que se assemelha a um sistema de pintura. Estes mapas são cruciais para aplicações gráficas, processadas em tempo real, que buscam maior realismo visual. Principalmente jogos digitais atuais se utilizam desta tecnologia, permitindo recriar o visual complexo de um modelo geométrico tridimensional com muitos polígonos, em um modelo simplificado. Desta forma o jogo utiliza somente o modelo mais leve para processar, mas consegue renderizar detalhes no objeto que criam a ilusão de complexidade geométrica. O processo original de criação deste mapa de normal (também conhecido como normal map), é muito trabalhoso. Um artista deve criar o modelo otimizado que será utilizado pelo jogo, além de outro modelo que contém tantos detalhes geométricos quantos forem desejados. Este último modelo servirá apenas como base para a criação do normal map, utilizando algum software 3D que contenha uma ferramenta para / This work presents a novel model of creation and modification of normal maps, using a intuitive interface similar of a paint system. These maps are crucial to graphical applications, processed in real time, that claims better visual realism. Most digital games use this technology, allowing the recreation of the visual complexity of a dense geometric 3D model, in a simplified model. That way game utilize only the lighter model to process, but can render the details on the object that create the illusion of geometric complexity. The creation process of this normal map is very labor intensive. An artist must create the simplified model that will be used in game, besides another model that is as complex as desired. This last model will be used only as a reference to extract the normal map in a 3D software. Then the normal map is applied in the simpler model, that is rendered with the visual detail the normal map represent. This work presents a computacional model that propose the concept of eliminate the creati

Tinta pode ser conceituada como uma película ou camada de polímero utilizada para proteger, sinalizar e iluminar ou mesmo para embelezar o substrato sobre o qual ela é aplicada. Basicamente, esta mistura polimérica é formada por elementos, tais como: resinas, pigmentos, cargas, solventes e aditivos. Os resíduos e o efluente líquido gerados na produção de tintas devem ser tratados de modo que não causem contaminação de rios e das nascentes de água. A reutilização do efluente tratado é uma das possibilidades que deve ser considerada a fim de minimizar os impactos ambientais e reduzir o uso de recursos naturais. Processos de oxidação química são promissores para a degradação de compostos orgânicos tóxicos. O caminho mais eficiente para a oxidação é o ataque pelo radical hidroxila (OH), por meio do processo de oxidação avançada, POA. Um dos exemplos de POA é o que faz uso de aceleradores de feixe de elétrons, adotado por vários países para a remoção de compostos orgânicos. O objetivo deste estudo é aplicar o POA por radiação ionizante para o tratamento do efluente da fabricação de tintas para repintura automotiva, industrial e automotivo. A metodologia utilizada foi um estudo de caso, desenvolvido por meio do processamento com feixe de elétrons aplicados a esses efluentes de indústria de tintas. O estudo foi realizado em três fases. Na primeira, aplicou-se 10 kGy, 30 kGy e 50 kGy de dose absorvida; na segunda, 50 kGy, 80 kGy e 100 kGy, e, na última fase, foi aplicada nas amostras uma dose de 50 kGy e dopadas com 0,005%, 0,05% e 0,5% de peróxido de hidrogénio em volume. Os principais resultados demonstraram uma redução média de cerca de 10% da Demanda Química de Oxigênio, DQO e cerca de 25% da Demanda Bioquímica de Oxigênio, DBO. Os padrões de efluentes finais definidos pelos requisitos legais, em especial pelo Decreto Estadual 8468/1976. para o descarte do corpo no rio ou reutilização em aplicações industriais, foram atendidos. / Paint can be conceptualized as a film or a layer of polymer, to protect, to signal and to illuminate or even to embellish the substrate on which it is applied. Basically, this polymeric compound is formed by elements such as: resin, pigments, fillers, solvents, and additives. Waste and wastewater generated in the production of paint, have to be treated so they do not cause the contamination of rivers and springs water. The reuse of the treated effluent is one of the possibilities that should be considered in order to minimize the environmental impacts and to reduce the use of natural resources. Chemical oxidation processes are promising for degradation of toxic organic compounds. The most efficient path for the oxidation is the attack by hydroxyl radical (OH), and the Advanced Oxidation Process, AOP, using electron beam accelerators have been adopted by several countries for the removal of organic compounds. The aim of this study is to apply the AOP by ionizing radiation to treat the effluent from the manufacture of automotive, automotive refinish and industrial paints. The methodology used was a case study, developed through the electron beam processing of these effluents. The study was developed in three phases: in the first one it was applied 10 kGy, 30 kGy and 50 kGy of absorbed dose, in the second one, 50 kGy, 80 kGy and 100 kGy, and in the last one it was applied 50 kGy in samples and doped with 0.005%, 0.05% and 0.5% of hydrogen peroxide. The main results have shown an average reduction of about 10% of Chemical Oxygen Demand, COD and about 25% of Biochemical Oxygen Demand, BOD. The final effluent standards set by legal requirements for disposal of the body in the river or reuse in industrial application.

The artist discusses her Master of Fine Arts exhibition at East Tennessee State University, Slocumb Galleries, Johnson City, Tennessee, October 28-November 8, 2002. Her exhibition was a personal narrative of her southern upbringing in small town Appalachia as well as a reflection of her inner thoughts and feelings towards feminism, adolescence, sexuality and Barbie. She chose to reference the female form, void of an actual body, implied through clothing. Works are figurative and sculptural and are constructed of copper, sterling and fine silver. They are sculptural hollow vessels, raised, formed, and colored with gesso and prismacolor pencils. Topics discussed: the artist's experiences as a woman, development in graduate school, casting versus raising, a detailed technical discussion on each piece, the influences of Marilyn da Silva’s use of the narrative and color on metal, and Judith Shea’s use of clothing to reference the human form. Includes images and discussions of twenty-six works and images of the exhibition.

As modern life develops, humans spend most of their time inside buildings. Understanding the effects of different building materials that exist indoors on indoor air quality is crucial to ensure comfort, health, and productivity of building occupants. Indoor air quality (IAQ) is an important field of building science that focuses on studying the existence of different compounds indoors. These compounds include: airborne particles such as dust, volatile organic compounds (VOCs) such as carbonyls, reactive gases such as radon, ozone and others. Ozone is a strong oxidant gas that has adverse effects on human health, and is highly reactive with building materials that exist indoors. This reaction may reduce its concentration indoors, but may produce other by-products that could be more harmful for human health than ozone itself. In this dissertation, ozone reaction with different building materials is investigated in four studies. The first includes studying the effect of indoor carpet fiber type on ozone removal and carbonyl emissions. This study provides valuable data and knowledge about the importance of selecting carpet type and its effect on indoor environment. In the second study, different indoor plants were tested to evaluate their ability to remove ozone. The results from this study show wide variation between plants tested on ozone removal. Also, the ability of plants as ozone removal agent changes as light levels change. The third part studies ozone removal efficiency of HVAC filters previously installed in air handling units located on green and white membrane roofs of a commercial building. Detailed filter surface analysis using scanning electron microscope (SEM) was performed to understand the nature of deposits on these filters. The reason for differences in ozone removal efficiency of two filters in comparison with new filter is also discussed. The fourth study investigated ozone removal and carbonyl emissions from three different VOC content indoor latex paints. The outcomes from this research show that zero VOC latex paint has the most ozone effective removal capacity and this paint is the least carbonyl emitter. The research presented in this dissertation adds new data, valuable knowledge, and expands the understanding of the importance of selecting indoor materials to raise indoor air quality and make the buildings' indoor environment healthier and safer.

<p>På SSAB i Borlänge har man upptäckt att avgaser från färgen förorenar ugnarna vid härdning. Avgaserna består av lösningsmedel och andra flyktiga föreningar som sedan förkolnas och faller ner på lackerade plåtband. För att komma runt det här problemet har SSAB tillsammans med Akzo Nobel Industrial Finishes AB, i Gamleby, tillverkat en färg som inte ska ge ifrån sig något lösningsmedel och på så sätt minska bildandet av föroreningar i ugnarna. Färgen heter NOVA GreenCoat och innehåller rapsmetylester, RME, som är ett reaktivt lösningsmedel och ska binda till bindemedlet i färgen och på så sätt hindras från att avgå vid härdning.</p><p>Syftet har varit att undersöka om en viss metod fungerar bra för att samla upp avgaser vid härdning. Avgaserna analyserades med GC-MS och härdningen studerades med FTIR. Arbetet har utförts både i Borlänge och i Gamleby.</p><p>Metoden för uppsamling av avgaserna visade sig fungera, dock inte särskilt effektivt. Den skulle därför behöva optimeras.</p><p>Härdningen kunde till viss del följas med hjälp av FTIR. Förändring i IR-spektrumet syntes för hydroxyltoppen vid cirka 3500 cm^-1. En skillnad kunde ses för en topp vid 2858 cm^-1 som uppkom i det ohärdade materialet innehållande RME, men den försvann under härdning. Toppen ökade med ökad mängd RME och syntes inte alls för de prover som inte innehöll RME.</p><p>Samtliga gjorda analyser indikerade att RME avgick vid härdning. Vid analys med GC-MS kunde de föreningar som avgick från RME identifieras som: metyl-14-metyl pentadekanoat och/eller metyl hexadekanoat, olika former av metyl oktadekanoat samt olika former av metyl eikosanoat. Andra föreningar från klarlacken som avgick var lösningsmedel x och y samt i två av proverna hexametoximetylmelamin, HMMM.</p> / <p>Problems with exhaust gases from paint that contaminates the ovens have been discovered at SSAB in Borlänge.  The exhaust gases contain solvents and other volatiles that vaporize from the paint and later on carbonize and fall down on the next coming sheets. SSAB and Akzo Nobel Industrial Finishes AB have developed a paint that is not supposed to vaporize any solvents and therefore reduce the contaminations of the ovens. The paint is called NOVA GreenCoat and contains rapeseed methyl ester, RME. RME is a reactive solvent that is supposed to react with the binder in the paint and therefore be prevented from leaving during thermal cure.</p><p>The purpose was to investigate whether a specific method worked well, for collecting the exhaust gases during thermal cure, or not. The collected exhaust gases were analyzed by using GC-MS and the cure was studied with FTIR. The work was executed both in Borlänge and Gamleby.</p><p>The method for collecting the exhaust gases worked, unfortunately it wasn’t particularly effective. It therefore needs to be optimized.</p><p>The cure could partially be studied by using FTIR. Changes in the IR-spectrum could be followed by looking at the hydroxyl peak at approximately 3500 cm^-1. A certain difference was observed for a peak at 2858 cm^-1 that appeared in the uncured material containing RME. The peak disappeared during cure. It increased with increased amount of RME and could not be observed at all for the samples that did not contain RME.</p><p>All the analyzed samples indicated that RME vaporize during cure. When analyzed with GC-MS the volatiles that vaporize from RME were identified as: hexadecanoic acid methyl ester and/or penta decanoic acid methyl-14-methyl ester, different forms of octadecanoic acid methyl ester and different forms of eicosanoic acid methyl ester. Other volatiles that vaporize from NOVA GreenCoat were solvent x and solvent y and for two of the samples hexa metoxy methyl melamine, HMMM, was also found.</p>