D. Tech. Environmental, Water and Earth Sciences / Pollution of water sources with heavy metals is currently a global concern due to the detrimental effect of these metals on both human and animal health. To address this issue, biological treatment methods have been seen as the most effective and eco-friendly option of the available treatment processes of wastewater. The aim of this study was to compare the ability of selected bacterial isolates and indigenous protozoan to tolerate nickel and vanadium in wastewater systems in order to determine which group of organisms might play a major role in the removal of nickel and vanadium, even at high concentrations, in wastewater treatment systems.

D. Tech. Chemical Engineering / Aims of this research project was to add value to largely wasted South African sawdust by development of low-cost AC of high efficiency for removal of toxic Cr (VI), phenol and glutaraldehyde from dilute aqueous media. The main objectives of the research project were: a) To develop low-cost AC based on South African P. patula sawdust using economical physical superheated steam activation.Characterization of carbon samples for selection of optimum preparation conditions for development of low-cost AC of effective microporosity mesoporosity and surface functionality for enhanced adsorption capacity of Cr (VI) and/or phenol and/or glutaraldehyde from dilute aqueous solution. Acid-amine surface groups modification of optimally developed AC for further enhancement of adsorption capacity for mixed polarized glutaraldehyde molecules from aqueous solution. b) To evaluate the aqueous phase batch adsorption properties of developed AC for Cr (VI) and phenol and, of acid-amine modified developed AC for glutaraldehyde. Determination of optimum pH for adsorption; accurate adsorption isotherm modelling for determination of maximum adsorption capacity, comparison of maximum adsorption capacities for Cr (VI) and phenol of developed AC with commercial AC and literature ACs, and attempt to establish average micropore size for enhanced capacity for Cr (VI) and phenol from dilute aqueous solution.Kinetics reaction and diffusion modelling for determination of adsorption rate constants and diffusion parameters; and determination of adsorption thermodynamic parameters.Evaluation of equilibrium selectivity of developed AC for Cr (VI) and/or phenol in binary aqueous solutions. c) To evaluate aqueous phase fixed-bed adsorption characteristics of developed AC for single Cr (VI) and mixed solution using Rapid Small Scale column Tests (RSSCTs). Generation of breakthrough curves at optimum adsorption conditions for evaluation of column performance indicators at different process conditions, bed regeneration-reusability potential, and dynamic adsorption selectivity of developed AC for Cr (VI) from solution of base metals. Determination of column diffusion parameters; accurate mass transfer and empirical modelling of breakthrough data; determination of applicable RSSCT scaling equation; and optimization of breakthrough data for accurate RSSCT scale-up.

Thesis (MTech. : Environmental Management.)--Tshwane University of Technology, 2010.

This dissertation seeks to reduce the energy consumption of steam stripping to regenerate aqueous amine used for CO₂ capture from coal-fired power plants. Rigorous rate-based models in Aspen Plus® were developed, and rate-based simulations were used for packed vapor/liquid separation units. Five main configurations with varying levels of complexity were evaluated with the two solvents. 8 m piperazine (PZ) always performed better than 9 m monoethanolamine (MEA). More complex flowsheets stripped CO₂ with higher efficiency due to the more reversible separation. Multi-stage flash configurations were competitive at their optimal lean loadings, but they had poor efficiency at low lean loading. The most efficient configuration was an interheated column, with more effective and distributed heat exchange. It had a secondary benefit of a cooler overhead temperature, so less water vapor exited with the CO₂. Using a rich loading of 0.40 mol CO₂/mol alkalinity in 8 m PZ, the optimal lean loading was 0.28 and the energy requirement was 30.9 kJ/mol CO₂. Case studies were also performed on cold rich bypass and the use of geothermal heat. When cold rich bypass is used with the 2-stage flash and 8 m PZ, it reduces equivalent work by 11% to 30.7 kJ/mol CO₂. PZ benefited the most from cold rich bypass because it had a higher water concentration in the overhead vapor than with MEA. In an advanced 2-stage flash with 8 m PZ, geothermal heat available from 150 down to 100 °C requires 35.5 kJ work/mol CO₂. The heat duty and equivalent work was higher than other optimized configurations, but it would be a valid option if separating the heat source from the steam cycle of a coal-fired power plant was highly valued. Pilot plant campaigns were simulated with the available thermodynamic models. Two campaigns with 8 m PZ were simulated within small deviation from the measured values. The average absolute errors in these campaigns were 2.5 and 2.7%. A campaign with 9 m MEA in a simple stripper demonstrated that the MEA model did not predict the solvent properties well enough to appropriately represent the pilot plant operation. / text

published_or_final_version / Civil Engineering / Master / Master of Philosophy

Η διπλωματική εργασία μου ασχολείται με την αφαίρεση θορύβου από Ηλεκτροκαρδιογράφημα(ΗΚΓ), με σκοπό τη καθαρότερη λήψη του σήματος για διαγνωστικούς σκοπούς. Ο θόρυβος στο ΗΚΓ προέρχεται από διάφορες πηγές, είτε τεχνικές, είτε φυσιολογικές. Η αφαίρεσή του είναι ουσιαστικής σημασίας. Στόχος της εργασίας αυτής είναι η παράθεση των κυρίων μεθόδων αφαίρεσης θορύβου από ΗΚΓ και του τρόπου λειτουργίας τους, καθώς και η παράθεση παραδειγμάτων από την πρόσφατη βιβλιογραφία. / --

Η προστασία του περιβάλλοντος και της δημόσιας υγείας στις μέρες μας είναι επίκαιρες όσο ποτέ άλλοτε. Μία από τις κύριες αιτίες μόλυνσης η οποία μάλιστα συνεχώς αυξάνεται λόγω και τις ολοένα αυξανόμενης αστικοποίησης είναι η απόθεση των υγρών αποβλήτων. Γι αυτό το λόγο τα τελευταία χρόνια γίνονται ερευνητικές προσπάθειες με στόχο τη μείωση των ρυπαντικών φορτίων σε περιβαλλοντικά αποδεκτά επίπεδα, για να μπορέσουν τα λύματα να διατεθούν χωρίς να αλλοιώνουν σημαντικά τα χαρακτηριστικά του φυσικού αποδέκτη. Η βιολογική επεξεργασία λυμάτων είναι μία σύνθετη διαδικασία που πραγματοποιείται μέσω περίπλοκων βιολογικών, φυσικοχημικών και βιοχημικών αντιδράσεων. Η βιολογική απομάκρυνση του αζώτου πραγματοποιείται με τις διεργασίες της νιτροποίησης και της απονιτροποίησης. Η νιτροποίηση πραγματοποιείται κάτω από αερόβιες συνθήκες με την συνδρομή αυτότροφων βακτηρίων, που μετατρέπουν την αμμωνία σε νιτρώδες άζωτο και στη συνέχεια ακολουθεί οξείδωση των νιτρωδών σε νιτρικό άζωτο. Η απονιτροποίηση συνίσταται στην αναγωγή του νιτρικού αζώτου σε αέριο άζωτο, με τη βοήθεια προαιρετικά αερόβιων ετερότροφων μικροοργανισμών. Η προσομοίωση της διεργασίας σε Η/Υ με τη χρήση μαθηματικών μοντέλων, παίζει σημαντικό ρόλο στην περιγραφή, τον έλεγχο και την πρόβλεψη των αλληλεπιδράσεων των συστατικών που συμβαίνουν σε μια εγκατάσταση επεξεργασίας λυμάτων. Στην παρούσα εργασία έγινε η χρήση ενός τροποποιημένου μοντέλου με βάση το ASM3 για την ακρίβεια του ASM3 2N για την προσομοίωση μιας οξειδωτικής τάφρου. Σκοπός της παρούσας εργασίας είναι να διερευνηθούν μέσω προσομοιώσεων οι συνθήκες αερισμού σε μία τυπική εγκατάσταση οξειδωτικής τάφρου, κάτω από τις οποίες επιτυγχάνεται απομάκρυνση του αζώτου από τα απόβλητα σε τιμές εντός των επιτρεπτών ορίων της νομοθεσίας για διάθεση στο φυσικό αποδέκτη. Ειδικότερα μελετήθηκε η επίδραση των σημαντικών λειτουργικών παραμέτρων οι οποίες επηρεάζουν την απόδοση του συστήματος με σκοπό τον προσδιορισμό εκείνο μέσω του οποίου επιτυγχάνεται ελαχιστοποίηση του κόστους λειτουργίας μιας τέτοιας εγκατάστασης. / -

In integrated circuit (IC) manufacturing, particulate contamination from hundreds of processe steps is a major cause of yield loss. The removal of particles is typically achieved through liquid chemical formulations aided by a sound field in the MHz frequency range. When liquid is irradiated with megasonic waves, dissolved gases play an important role in particle removal and feature damage. To take the advantage of the beneficial effect of CO₂ (aq.), this thesis describes the development and optimization of a megasonic cleaning process using a chemical system containing NH₄OH and NH₄HCO₃ at an alkaline pH in which a specific amount of aqueous CO₂ can be maintained to minimize feature damage. In addition, certain etching effects at a slightly alkaline pH were supported for achieving high particle removal. Sonoluminescence (SL) data were collected from these cleaning solutions and correlated with the cleaning performance. The intensity of SL is believed to be a sensitive indicator of transient cavitation during megasonic irradiation, which is thought to be responsible for fragile feature damage. To further analyze the SL signal with respect to the emission from hydroxyl radicals, single-band filters were used to collect the SL signal in different wavelength ranges. The study of particle removal and feature damage was performed using a single-wafer cleaning tool, MegPie® (ProSys, Inc.), which provided acoustic irradiation at a frequency of 0.925 MHz. Commercially available SiO₂ slurry with 200 ± 20 nm particles was used for particle contamination. Particle removal was investigated on both blanket SiO₂ samples and patterned samples. Feature damage studies were conducted on patterned samples by examining the number of line breakages per unit area. By adjusting the pH in NH₄OH/NH₄HCO₃ solutions from 7.8 to 8.5, the amount of CO₂ (aq.) was varied. At a pH of 8.2 with ~ 320 ppm CO₂ (aq.) in the cleaning solution, a high particle removal efficiency was achieved (> 90%) at an acoustic power intensity of 1 W/cm² for an exposure time of 60 s, and the feature damage was reduced by > 50%. For SL signal analysis, band filters in the wavelength range of (i) 280 – 305.5 nm, (ii) 300 – 340 nm, (iii) 335 – 375 nm, and (iv) 374.5 – 397.5 nm were used to resolve the SL spectrum in these wavelength ranges. The filters were sandwiched, one at a time, between the optical window and the photomultiplier tube (PMT) in the Cavitation Threshold (CT) cell. Air-, Ar-, and CO₂-containing DI water (at pH 4.53 with ~ 90 ppm aqueous CO₂) was pumped through the cell at a flow rate of 130 ml/min. The acoustic power was ramped from 0.1 to 4 W/cm² at an acoustic frequency of 0.925 MHz. The SL signal intensity showed the highest value in the ranges of 300 – 340 and 335 – 375 nm in air- and Ar-saturated DI water, which is due to the emission from excited hydroxyl radicals. These results are consistent with an SL spectrum analysis performed using expensive optical set-ups. In CO₂-containing DI water, the SL signal intensity was suppressed by a factor of 100. The methodology reported in this work is simple, inexpensive, and capable of capturing SL spectral features due to hydroxyl radicals.

Non-native species are a major cause of endangerment for native species, but the mechanisms are often unclear. As species invasions continue to rise, it is important to understand how to mitigate this threat. Our field experiment quantified the impact of introduced Abert's squirrels (Sciurus aberti) on rates of food removal within the range of the critically endangered Mount Graham red squirrel (Tamiasciurus hudsonicus grahamensis). In the presence of Abert's squirrels, the time until 50% of cones were removed was 5.55 days faster than when Abert's squirrels were excluded (95% confidence interval 2.25 to 11.63 days). The impact on food availability as a result of cone removal by Abert's squirrels suggests the potential of food competition as a mechanism of endangerment for the Mount Graham red squirrel. Eradication of established non-native populations is rare. Management targeted at specific mechanisms by which non-natives cause endangerment is an essential tool for conservation.

Domestic wastewater is the most abundant type of wastewater. Direct discharge of untreated domestic wastewater has environmental and public health risks due to the presence of organics, nutrients and pathogens. Application of anaerobic processes for the treatment of domestic sewage, which at present is largely treated by aerobic processes, has drawn considerable attention recently. Anaerobic processes can be applied for the removal of organic matter (methanogenesis) and nitrogen (anaerobic ammonium oxidation (Anammox)).The toxicity of fluoride to methanogenesis was investigated. The results indicate that acetoclastic were more susceptible to fluoride than hydrogenotrophic methanogens. The concentration of fluoride causing 50% inhibition (IC50) to acetoclastic ranged from 18.1 to 155.7 mg L-1 while for hydrogenotrophic methanogens was > 400.0 mg L-1.The feasibility of a combined system consisting of anaerobic up-flow anaerobic sludge blanket (UASB) followed by aerobic activated sludge (AS) reactor for removal of carbonaceous and nitrogenous contaminants from strong synthetic sewage (2.5 g chemical oxygen demand (COD) L-1) was also studied. The average combined removal of total COD, volatile fatty acids (VFA) and protein was higher than 89.0%, 99.0% and 97.0%; respectively. Extensive nitrification (96.0%) was observed when dissolved oxygen (DO) concentration was > 2.0 mg L-1. In contrast, only partial nitrification occurred when the AS received high organic loads and/or the DO level was below 2.0 mg L-1.The inhibitory effect of nitrite and nitrate on methanogenesis was evaluated. Methanogenic activity was inhibited by the presence of NOx- compounds (i.e., nitrite and nitrate). The inhibition imparted by nitrate was not due to the nitrate itself, but rather to its reduced intermediate, nitrite. The toxicity of NOx- to methanogens was found to be reversible after all the NOx- were reduced during denitrification.Moreover, the development of Anammox enrichment cultures was evaluated. Anammox cultures were successfully developed using sludge samples collected from municipal wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) as inocula but not from methanogenic granular sludges. Return activated sludge (RAS) collected from WWTP operating for biological nitrogen removal had the highest intrinsic level of Anammox activity. RAS Anammox culture was developed rapidly within 40 days with a doubling time of 6.8 days.