Bioprocesses for air pollution control can generally be categorized as bioscrubber, biofilter, and biotrickling filter systems. These processes have been proven to be economical and effective for control of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) with concentrations of <1,000 mg C m-3 in gas streams. First, an activated sludge aeration tank (W x L x H = 40 x 40 x 300 cm) with a set of 2 mm orifice air spargers was utilized to treat gas-borne VOCs (toluene, p-xylene, and dichloromethane) in air streams. The effects of liquid depth (Z), aeration intensity (G/A), the overall mass transfer rate of oxygen in clean water (KLaO2), the Henry¡¦s law constant of the tested VOC (H), and the influent gaseous VOC concentration (C0) on the efficiency of removal of VOCs were examined and compared with a literature-cited model. Results show that the measured VOC removal efficiencies and those predicted by the model were comparable at a G/A of 3.75 ¡V 11.25 m3 m-2 hr-1 and C0 of around 1,000 ¡V 6,000 mg m-3. Experimental data also indicate that the designed gas treatment reactor with KLaO2 = 5 ¡V 15 hr-1, could achieve > 85% removal of VOCs with H = 0.24 ¡V 0.25 at an aerated liquid depth of 1 m, and > 95% removal of dichloromethane with H = 0.13 at a 1 m liquid depth. The model predicts that, for gas treatment in common activated sludge tanks, with KLaO2 = 5 ¡V 10 hr-1, depth = 3 ¡V 4.5 m, G/A = 9 ¡V 18 m3 m-2 hr-1, > 92% VOC removal can be achieved with operating parameters of Z of 3.0 m and KLaVOC/(G/A) of about 0.28 m-1, for VOCs with H < 0.3, such as most oxygen-containing hydrocarbons with low molecular weights, and benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, and dichloromethane. Second, an activated sludge aeration tank and a sieve-plate column with six sieve plates were utilized to treat gas-borne VOCs in air streams. The tank was used for the biodegradation of the absorbed VOCs from the column which utilized the activated mixed liquor drawn from the tank as a scrubbing liquor. This research proposed a model for VOC absorption to a down-flow activated sludge liquor in a sieve-plate column. The experimental setup consisted of a pilot-scale activated-sludge tank and a sieve-plate tower, as demonstrated. The sieve-plate tower was constructed from a 25 x 25 x 162 cm (W x L x H) acrylic column with six custom-made sieve plates. Each plate has 382 holes which are 3 mm in diameter arranged on a square pitch. The holes give an open area of 3.82% of the whole plate area for gas flow. Two 25 mm-i.d. down-comer pipes were also equipped to allow for the downflow of the activated sludge liquor. Ports were provided at the column inlet, outlet, and each plate for gas and liquid sampling. Experiments were conducted and the model verified based on the results of tests on the removal efficiencies of isopropyl alcohol (IPA), toluene and p-xylene in the system operated at a range of influent VOC concentrations, air application rates, and liquid/gas flow ratios (L/G). The model developed by a material balance for the gaseous- and liquid-VOC over each plate of the column was developed and experimentally verified in this study. Superficial gas velocity over the column plate (U), number of plates (N), volumetric liquid-phase VOC-transfer coefficient (KLaVOC), aerated liquid depth over the plate (Z), volumetric liquid/gas flow-rate ratio (L/G), dimensionless Henry¡¦s law coefficient of the VOC to be absorbed (H), VOC content of the influent scrubbing liquor (xN+1), and the biodegradation rate constant of the VOC in the activated sludge mixed liquor (k) are among the affecting parameters to the effectiveness of the VOC removal. Model application by the model for effects of affecting parameters on the VOC removal effectiveness indicates that L/G, plate number N, biodegradation rate constant k, Henry¡¦s law constant of VOC H are among the important ones. A L/GH of greater than 2 and N of around 6 are enough for the effective (>90%) removal of the influent VOCs with H < 0.01 if no biodegradation occurred in the column. However, a N of over 16 is required for the influent VOCs with H of around 0.2. Biodegradation with a rate constant of around 100 hr-1 in the column greatly improves the column performance.

Abstract Isopropyl alcohol¡]IPA¡^and toluene are extensively used in industry as solvents. They are all highly toxic to animals and humans. Accordingly, IPA and toluene are strongly associated with problems of VOCs. In first step catalytic incineration was adopted to decompose IPA and toluene in laboratory, and the second step for a pilot-scale regenerative catalytic oxidizer ¡]RCO¡^were adopted to decompose mixture VOCs in real soil herein. The screening test of catalytic activity and the influences of the operational parameters on IPA and toluene removal efficiencies were widely discussed through catalytic incinerations of IPA and toluene in laboratory. The more effective and cheaper catalysts through above discussions of catalytic incineration were selected. And they were utilized in an pilot scale RCO as follows to investigate their performance in VOCs oxidation and RCO operations in THC removal of contamination soils. The achievements of this study are summarized as follows: ¡]1¡^Cu/Mn and Cu/Co gravel catalytic incinerations of isopropyl alcohol The results demonstrated that 10 wt% Cu0.6Co0.4 catalyst was the most effective because the CO2 yield reached 95 % under the following operating conditions; a temperature of 425oC, an inlet IPA concentration of 2500 ppm, an oxygen concentration of 21%, and a space velocity of 13500 hr-1. Additionally, the stability test results indicated that the 10 wt% Cu0.6Co0.4 catalyst exhibited excellent stability at both low and high conversion of IPA. ¡]2¡^20% Cu/Mn aluminum oxide catalytic incinerations of toluene The conversion for toluene reached 95% when the Cu/Mn catalyst was used with a metal ratio of 1:1 and 20% loading at 350¢XC, an influent toluene concentration of 1000 ppm, oxygen concentration of 21%, a space velocity of 12000 hr-1, and relative humidity of 26%. The long-term test was proceeded for seven days at a constant influent toluene concentration of 1000 ppm, constant oxygen concentration of 21%, constant space velocity of 12000 hr-1 and constant relative humidity of 26%. The SEM results indicated the Cu/Mn catalyst was quite stable at 350¢J. ¡]3¡^RCO testing for a copper/manganese catalyst of gaseous toluene The Cu/Mn (20wt%) catalyst was selected as the best one, because it converted 95% of the toluene at 400¢J. The results also indicating that the Cu/Mn catalyst was quite stable at 400¢J. (4) RTO treatment of VOCs with SVE system The conversion for VOCs reached 80% at 900¢XC, an influent VOCs concentration of 450-2000 ppm and a gas flow rate of 0.5 m3/min.The Thermal Recovery Efficiency¡]TRE¡^was approximately 86-90% in a RTO operated at 800-900¢J. (5)RCO treatment of VOCs with SVE system¡]10 wt% Cu0.6Co0.4 gravel catalyst¡^ The 10 wt% Cu0.6Co0.4 gravel catalyst was the poverty active, because it converted 65% of the VOCs by SVE system operated at 650¢J. (6)RCO treatment of VOCs with SVE system¡]20% Cu/Mn aluminum oxide catalytst¡^ The 20% Cu/Mn aluminum oxide catalytic was the best choice, because it converted 95% of the VOCs at 650¢J, an influent VOCs concentration of 450-10000 ppm and a gas flow rate of 0.5-1.5 m3/min. The SEM results indicated that the conversion of VOCs decay did not clearly vary at 650¢J, also indicating that the Cu/Mn catalyst selected was quite stable. The TRE was approximately 90% in a RCO¡]20% Cu/Mn aluminum oxide catalytic¡^operated at 650¢J. (7)RCO treatment of VOCs with SVE system¡]20% Cu/Mn gravel catalytst¡^ The 20% Cu/Mn gravel catalytst was the best selection , because it converted 95% of the VOCs at 600¢J, an influent VOCs concentration of 450-10000 ppm and a gas flow rate of 0.5-1.5 m3/min. The SEM results indicated that the conversion of VOCs decay did not clearly vary at 600¢J, also indicating that the Cu/Mn catalyst selected was quite stable. The TRE was approximately 90% in a RCO¡]20% Cu/Mn gravel catalytic¡^operated at 600¢J.

En aquesta tesi, proposem la fabricació y la caracterització d’un microconcentrador de gasos, per ser acoblat amb un microsistema de detecció, per millorar el seu límit de detecció davant els gasos tòxics. Aquest estudi s’aplica especialment al benzè, que es un compost d’alta cancerigenitat. El preconcentrador proposat esta basat en estructura plana, que, es una opció de fabricació més simple y permet una millor aïllament tèrmic amb el resta d’unitats del microsistema, qu’els estructures 3D proposats a la literatura. No obstant, els factors de concentració obtinguts amb l’estructura plana queden generalment més baixos, per causa de la menor quantitat de material absorbent que pot acollir. En aquesta tesis, es va superar aquest problema mitjançant l’utilització del carboní actiu, un adsorbent d’alta capacitat d’adsorció, així com l’optimització de les condicions de funcionament del dispositiu. Finalment, acoblant el microconcentrador amb un micro-cromatògraf, vam aconseguir una detecció sensible y selectiva del benzè en barreja amb altres volàtils a l’aire. / The present thesis focuses on the fabrication and characterization of a gas microconcentrator for to be coupled with a detection microsystem, in order to lower its detection limit towards toxic gases and vapours in contaminated areas. This study was more especially applied to the preconcentration of benzene, a cancerigenic compound at low ppb level. A preconcentrator based on a planar structure was proposed regarding its simpler fabrication, better thermal insulation and lower power consumption, compared to the 3D structures proposed conventionally in literature. In order to obtain higher concentration factors with such structure, its small size was compensated by using a high adsorption capacity adsorbent such as activated carbon as well as the optimization of the preconcentration conditions of the device. Finally, the microconcentrator was validated as injection unit when coupled with a microchromatographic system, where a sensitive and selective analysis of benzene in mixture with other VOCs was achieved.

Soil contamination with petroleum hydrocarbons is a common problem. Toxic compounds such as BTEXs are present in gasoline derivatives. They can move through the soil and contaminate the groundwater, especially if methanol is present. This problem is critical in permeable soil. Although leaching of BTEX compounds from soil to the water is almost temperature dependent, movement of methanol through the soil is not. Methanol can move through the porous soil and reach the groundwater in a short time. It can also dissolve and carry BTEX compounds through the porous soil. Therefore, fast cleanup of the permeable soil which is contaminated with BTEX and methanol is crucial. Chlorine dioxide is an oxidizer, which is easy to use and safe to transport; and may be considered as a treatment technique for soil cleanup. Keywords: Groundwater, soil contamination, BTEX compounds, methanol, chlorine dioxide, soil cleanup

Rapid development and growth of industrialization has brought immense enrichments in living standards of humans, however, improper planned development also brings along several environmental problems such as pollution of environment and excessive consumption of natural resources. Among all the others, uncontrolled utilization of water poses a severe threat to the coming generations. Past decades have witnessed water shortage in various countries of the world. Although about 80% of the earth’s surface is covered with water, around 97.2% of water is salty making it inappropriate for general usage. Among the rest of the 2.8%, which is present as fresh water on surface, a large proportion of it has been found to be severely polluted. The increasing demand of fresh water both for industrial and domestic usage adds great demand on the available groundwater. Moreover, the severe pollution of fresh water on the surface adds more stress on the available groundwater. In Australia, approximately 20% of water supply is from groundwater and in the case of Western Australia groundwater provides two thirds of its water supply needs. Thus, it is important to manage groundwater sources in Western Australia to achieve the optimum water utilization and maintain the water table and it is also essential to decide on an appropriate water budget. Groundwater flow modelling is an effective tool to get appropriate water distribution and, to examine effects from pumping on water levels and direction of groundwater flow paths, thereby helping in its proper management and utilization. Apart from monitoring the flow and utilization, groundwater flow modeling is also vital to keep the track of pollutant in the groundwater. Increasing surface pollution and landfill sites tend to pollute the groundwater due to leaching. / The above mentioned aspects formed the basis of the present research. A groundwater flow model was developed in Visual MODFLOW Premium to study the effect of three different types of soil in and around Perth region. This study also shows the hypothetical contaminated site model for benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene and xylene (BTEX) transport in Perth Superficial unconfined aquifer which includes three major aquifer sediments namely Bassendean Sand, Safety Bay Sand and Tamala Limestone. Among the four different contaminants it was observed that benzene is able to migrate quickly as compared to the other contaminants due to its smaller distribution coefficient. / This study also explored the major soil parameters such as effect of sorption, effective porosity and hydraulic conductivity on contaminant plume configuration and contaminants concentration for the three types of aquifer sediments. A critical comparison of the behaviour of the three different types of soils was also conducted. / Simulation results of sensitivity analysis have shown that sorption and hydraulic conductivity greatly affected the contaminant plume length and concentration of contaminants with much lesser effect shown by the effective porosity. The simulated results also showed that the movement of contaminant in Tamala Limestone is most rapid by comparing these three types of aquifer sediments together. Thus, it can be said that contaminated sites found in Tamala Limestone needs immediate remediation of contaminants to bring down the contaminants concentration in groundwater. / In brief, the thesis explores the current groundwater scenario in and around Perth region. Based on the information a hypothetical scenario simulation has critically analyzed the various parameters affecting the water and contaminant flow for the various soil parameters. The study is considered as a building block for further research on developing a remediation technique for groundwater contaminant treatment.

The Onsager heat of transport for p-tert-butyltoluene was measured, as part of a series of preliminary experiments towards the determination of the importance of temperature gradients on the air-sea flux of carbon dioxide. The results presented in this thesis imply that the temperature gradient is a major contributor to the magnitude of the air-sea flux. The heat of transport has been measured for the p-tert-butyltoluene system by measuring stationary-state pressure changes for known temperature differences on the vapour side of the interface. At the pressure ranges used the number of mean free paths was always outside the Knudsen zone, but the values of Q* were approximately 100 % of the latent heat of vaporisation. Departures from linearity of plots of P against ΔT are attributed to temperature jumps at the surface of the dry upper plate. Both the results taken for p-tert-butyltoluene and the earlier results for water from this laboratory fit to a Type III BET isotherm, where the c parameter is not constant. They also reveal the importance of the temperature gradient in determining the value of the thermal accommodation coefficient, and provide a new method of measuring thermal accommodation coefficients for a variety of surfaces and vapours

Dans la première partie de mon travail, j'ai préparé quatre catalyseurs différents à base d'oxydes de manganèse: une perovskite (LaMnO3), par voie sol-gel; un oxide simple (Mn2O3), par méthode rapide et un tamis moléculaire octahedrique (OMS-2) par deux méthodes de préparation différentes, via l'état solide (OMS) et la méthode hydrothermale (OMSh). Les propriétés physicochimiques de ces catalyseurs ont été caractérisées par diffraction des rayons X (DRX), adsorption-désorption de N2, analyses thermogravimétriques (ATD/ATG), analyses chimiques (ICP-OES) et réduction en température programmée (H2-RTP). Leurs performances catalytiques ont été évaluées dans la réaction d’oxydation du toluène. Trois cycles catalytiques consécutifs ont été réalisés pour chaque catalyseur afin de confirmer les performances. Afin d'évaluer la stabilité des catalyseurs dans des conditions réactionnelles, les performances catalytiques ont été étudiées sur des expériences de longue durée à température constante, pendant 24 h à 25% de conversion du toluène. Des tests d'oxydation du toluène sur un catalyseur de référence, type Pd/Al2O3 contenant 0,78% en poids de Pd, ont également été effectués à des fins de comparaison. Les caractéristiques cristallines détectées dans les modèles DRX sont bien compatibles avec la formation des structures désirées. Sur la base de leur surface spécifique et de leur réductibilité à basse température, les catalyseurs ont été classés comme suit : OMSs > Mn2O3 > OMS > LaMnO3. Cette tendance est en bon accord avec les performances observées dans l'élimination catalytique du toluène. Un modèle cinétique a été proposé et un bon accord a été obtenu lors de l'ajustement avec les données expérimentales. Dans la seconde partie de mon travail, des catalyseurs LaMnO3 (LM) avec un rapport molaire acide citrique (CA) sur nitrates métalliques (Mn et La) allant de 0,5 à 2 (LM 0,5 à LM 2) ont été synthétisés par méthode sol-gel citrate, afin d'étudier l'effet du rapport de l'acide citrique sur les propriétés physico-chimiques et les performances catalytiques. Les propriétés physicochimiques de ces catalyseurs ont été caractérisées par diffraction des rayons X (DRX), adsorption-désorption de N2 et par spectroscopie d'émission atomique de plasma à couplage inductif (ICP-AES). Sur des échantillons sélectionnés, des caractérisations supplémentaires par analyse thermogravimétrique et thermique différentielle (ATD/ATG), une réduction programmée en température par de l'hydrogène (H2-TPR) et une spectroscopie de photoélectrons X (XPS) ont été réalisées. Les résultats montrent que le rapport molaire acide citrique sur nitrates métalliques influence significativement le profil obtenu en ATD/ATG des solides non calcinés ainsi que les propriétés physico-chimiques des catalyseurs. Les caractéristiques cristallines détectées par DRX sont bien compatibles avec la formation de la phase perovskite LaMnO3. De petites caractéristiques de Mn2O3 ont été détectées dans les diagrammes de diffraction de tous les catalyseurs LM, à l'exception du rapport molaire élevé des nitrates CA / (Mn + La) (1,9 et 2,0). Inversement, des pics La2O3 sont observés pour des valeurs allant de 1,6 à 2, l'intensité la plus élevée étant détectée au rapport molaire égal à 2. Les performances catalytiques ont été évaluées dans l'oxydation du toluène en réalisant trois cycles catalytiques consécutifs pour atteindre des performances stables. Afin d'évaluer la stabilité des catalyseurs dans des conditions de réaction, des expériences à température constante ont été effectuées pendant 24 h à 17% de conversion du toluène. Les catalyseurs LM1.2, LM1.3 et LM1.5 ont montré les meilleures performances catalytiques en oxydation totale du toluène, tandis que LM1 et LM1.7 présentaient un comportement intermédiaire et LM0.8 était peu actif / In the first part of my work, I have prepared four different catalysts based on manganese oxides: a perovskite (LaMnO3), via sol-gel method; a simple oxide (Mn2O3), by rapid method and an Octahedral Molecular Sieve (OMS-2) by two different preparation methods, via solid state (OMSs) and hydrothermal method (OMSh). The physicochemical properties of these catalysts were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), N2 adsorption–desorption, TGA/DTA, ICP-OES and H2-TPR. Their catalytic performances were evaluated in the oxidation of toluene. Three consecutive catalytic cycles were performed for each catalyst in order to reach steady state performances. In order to assess the stability of the catalysts under reaction conditions, the catalytic performances were studied upon long-term experiments running for 24 h at 25% of toluene conversion. Tests of toluene oxidation over a typical industrial catalyst, such as a commercial Pd/Al2O3 catalyst containing 0.78 wt% Pd, were also performed for comparison purposes. The crystalline features detected in the XRD patterns are well consistent with the formation of the desired structures. Based on their specific surface area and their low-temperature reducibility, the catalysts were ranked as follows: OMSs> Mn2O3> OMSh> LaMnO3. This trend was in good agreement with the performances observed in the catalytic removal of toluene. A kinetic model was proposed and a good agreement was obtained upon fitting with the experimental data. In the second part of my work, LaMnO3 (LM) catalysts with molar ratio of citric acid (CA) to metal nitrates (Mn and La) ranging from 0.5 to 2 (LM 0.5 to LM 2) were synthesized by citrate sol–gel method, in order to study effect of citric acid ratio on the physico-chemical properties and the catalytic performances. The physicochemical properties of these catalysts were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), N2 adsorption–desorption and by inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectroscopy (ICP-AES). Over selected samples, additional characterizations by thermogravimetric and differential thermal analysis (TGA/DTA), temperature-programmed reduction by hydrogen (H2-TPR) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) were carried out. The results show that the molar ratio of citric acid to metal nitrates significantly influenced the TGA/DTA profile of gels along with the physico-chemical properties of the catalysts. The crystalline features detected by XRD are well consistent with the formation of LaMnO3 perovskite phase. Small features of Mn2O3 were detected in the diffraction patterns of all LM catalysts except for high CA/Mn+La nitrates molar ratio (1.9 and 2.0). Conversely, La2O3 peaks appeared for values ranging from 1.6 to 2, the highest intensity being detected at molar ratio equal to 2. The catalytic performances were evaluated in the oxidation of toluene, performing three consecutive catalytic cycles in order to reach steady-state performances. In order to assess the stability of the catalysts under reaction conditions, long-term experiments running for 24 h at 17 % of toluene conversion were carried out. The catalysts LM1.2, LM1.3 and LM1.5 showed the best catalytic performances in terms of toluene conversion, LM0.8 was poor performing, while LM1 and LM1.7 exhibited an intermediate behaviour

Le travail de la thèse se focalise sur le traitement de l'air chargé en composés organiques volatils (COV) par un procédé d'ozonation avancée sur les zéolithes. Le procédé est basé sur la combinaison de deux techniques, utilisées de manière séquentielle : l'adsorption des COV sur un lit de zéolithes puis la régénération du lit saturé par ozonation. Avant d'étudier leur performance sur l'adsorption puis l'ozonation, les zéolithes ont été caractérisées par l'adsorption à l’azote, par spectroscopie Infra Rouge et par microscopie électronique. La concentration des sites acides de Lewis et de Brønsted ont également été quantifiées. Les interactions binaires entre le toluène et les zéolithes, puis entre l'ozone et les zéolithes sont étudiées. Les équilibres d'adsorption et les courbes de percées sur les différentes zéolithes sont déterminés expérimentalement, puis modélisés. La réactivité de l'ozone sur les zéolithes a été clarifiée, mettant en évidence la décomposition de l'ozone et la création d’espèces oxygénées oxydantes, adsorbées à la surface. L'influence de la concentration en sites acides de Lewis sur la décomposition de l’ozone a été discutée. Enfin, la régénération des adsorbants chargés en COV par l'ozone gazeux a été réalisée. L'influence des propriétés des zéolithes et des conditions opératoires ont été étudiées. / The PhD work focuses on the treatment of Organic Volatile Compound polluted air by an advanced ozonation process on hydrophobic zeolites. The process is based on two steps: gaseous pollutants are firstly adsorbed on zeolite bed; the second step is the regeneration of zeolites charged of COV by gaseous ozone. Firstly, zeolites are characterized by Nitrogen adsorption, analysis of Lewis and Brønsted acid sites, Infrared spectroscopy and Scanning Electron Microscopy. The adsorption equilibrium and breakthrough curve of toluene on different kind of zeolites are determined experimentally and modelled. The study of the reactivity of ozone on fresh zeolites shows that ozone is mainly decomposed on its surface and stable surface oxygenated species are produced. The latter can react with organic pollutant. The influence of Lewis acid site and operating conditions are discussed. Finally, the oxidation by ozone of toluene adsorbed on zeolites is realised. The comparison of zeolite structure and operating conditions (Air humidity, inlet ozone concentration) are carried out.

Made available in DSpace on 2014-12-17T14:14:04Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 GeorgeESC.pdf: 1518565 bytes, checksum: bcd5e83ea0cd501b6573d93e3ef15380 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2005-11-03 / Funda??o de Amparo a Pesquisa do Estado da Bahia / Aim: The aim of this work was to investigate the hypothesis that catechol and 3MC inhibit FADH2-linked basal respiration in mitochondria isolated from rat liver and brain homogenates. Moreover, catechol ability to induce DNA damage in rat brain cells through the comet assay (alkaline single-cell gel electrophoresis assay) was also observed. Methods: Two different catechols were evaluated: pirocatechol (derived from benzene) and 3-methylcatechol (derived from toluene); rat liver and brain homogenates were incubated with 1mM catechol at pH 7.4 for up to 30 minutes. After that, mitochondrial fractions were isolated by differential centrifugation. Basal oxygen uptake was measured using a Clark-type electrode after the addition of 10 mM sodium succinate for a period of 12 minutes. In additional experiments, rat brain cells were treated with 1, 5 and 10mM pirocatechol for up to 20 minutes at 37? C, and submitted to electrophoresis. Results: Catechols (pirocatechol and 3methylcatechol) induced a time-dependent partial inhibition of FADH2-linked basal mitochondrial respiration. Indeed, pirocatechol was able to produce a dosedependent DNA oxidative damage in rat brain cells by 2 and 4 injury levels. These results suggest that reactive oxygen species generated by the oxidation of catechols, induced an impairment on mitochondrial respiration and a DNA damage, which might be related to their citotoxicity. Conclusion: Catechols produced an inhibition of basal respiration associated to FADH2 in isolated liver and brain mitochondria; 3-methylcatechol, at the same concentration, produced similar toxicity in the mitochondrial model. Indeed, pirocatechol induced a DNA damage in rat brain cells, mainly observed in comets formation and consequent DNA degradation / Objetivo Testar a hip?tese de catec?is inibirem a respira??o basal associada ao FADH2 em fra??es mitocondriais hep?ticas e cerebrais de rato. Tamb?m, procurou-se estudar a ocorr?ncia de danos no DNA induzidos por catecol em c?lulas de c?rebro de ratos. M?todos: Foram avaliados dois catec?is: O pirocatecol (derivado do benzeno) e o 3-metilcatecol (derivado do tolueno); Os homogeneizados de f?gado e c?rebro de ratos foram incubados com catecol a 1 mM em pH fisiol?gico. Depois disso, as fra??es mitocondriais foram isoladas por centrifuga??o diferencial. O consumo basal de oxig?nio foi medido com um eletrodo do tipo Clark ap?s inje??o de succinato a 10 mM, e o consumo foi observado por 12 minutos. Em experimentos adicionais, amostras de tecidos cerebrais foram tratadas com pirocatecol em diferentes concentra??es (1 mM, 5 mM e 10 mM), durante 0 (sem incuba??o), 10 e 20 minutos a 37?C, e posteriormente submetidas a el etroforese. Resultados: Os resultados demonstram que os catec?is induziram uma inibi??o parcial da respira??o basal mitocondrial associada ao FADH2 de forma dependente do tempo. J? no caso dos experimentos com o ensaio cometa, os dados obtidos demonstram um aumento na ocorr?ncia de cometas de n?veis 2 a 4 de forma dose dependente, sugerindo que as esp?cies reativas de oxig?nio geradas pela oxida??o do catecol induzem danos de DNA, o que pode tamb?m estar relacionado com citotoxicidade deste composto. Conclus?o O pirocatecol produz inibi??o da respira??o basal associada ao FADH2 em mitoc?ndrias isoladas de f?gado e c?rebro de ratos; o 3-metilcatecol, nessa mesma concentra??o, produziu toxicidade semelhante no modelo mitocondrial. Adicionalmente, o pirocatecol induziu a um dano de DNA em c?lulas cerebrais de ratos, observado na forma??o de cometas e conseq?ente degrada??o do DNA

Made available in DSpace on 2014-12-17T15:01:58Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 MarileideMA.pdf: 625410 bytes, checksum: 4571e21e5bf4561ee450806713d749af (MD5) Previous issue date: 2005-03-11 / Coordena??o de Aperfei?oamento de Pessoal de N?vel Superior / In the last decade, biological purification of gaseous waste has become an important alternative to many conventional methods of exhaust air treatment. More recently, biofiltration has proved to be an effective and inexpensive method for the treatment of air contaminated with volatile organic compounds (VOCs). A biofilter consists in a reactor packed with a porous solid bed material, where the microorganisms are fixed. During the biofiltration process, polluted air is transported through the biofilter medium where the contaminant is degraded. Within the biofilm, the pollutants in the waste gases are energy and carbon sources for microbial metabolism and are transformed into CO2, water and biomass. The bed material should be characterized by satisfactory mechanical and physical properties as structure, void fraction, specific area and flow resistance. The aim of this research was the biofilter construction and study of the biological degradation of ethanol and toluene, as well as the modeling of the process. Luffa cylindrica is a brazilian fiber that was used as the filtering material of the present work. The parameters and conditions studied were: composition of nutrients solution; effect of microflorae strains, namely Pseudomanas putida and Rhodococcus rhodochrous; waste gas composition; air flow rate; and inlet load of VOCs. The biofilter operated in diffusion regime and the best results for remotion capacity were obtained when a microorganisms consortion of Pseudomanas putida and Rhodococcus rhodochrous,were used, with a gas flow rate of 1 m3.h-1 and molar ratio nitrogene/phosphore N/P=2 in the nutrients solution. The maximum remotion capacity for ethanol was around 90 g.m-3.h-1 and 50 g.m-3.h-1 to toluene. It was proved that toluene has inhibitory effect on the ethanol remotion When the two VOCs were present in the same waste gas, there was a decrease of 40% in ethanol remotion capacity. Luffa cylindrica does not present considerable pressure drop. Ottengraf and van Lith models were used to represent the results obtained for ethanol and toluene, respectively. The application of the transient model indicated a satisfactory approximation between the experimental results obtained for ethanol and toluene vapors biofiltration and the ones predicted it / Na ultima d?cada, a purifica??o biol?gica de rejeitos gasosos tem sido uma importante alternativa em detrimento dos m?todos convencionais de tratamento. Mais recentemente, a biofiltra??o tem se mostrado um m?todo efetivo e de baixo custo para tratamento de ar contaminado com compostos org?nicos vol?teis (COVs). O biofiltro ? um reator que possui um leito filtrante constitu?do por um material poroso, onde est?o fixados os microrganismos. Durante o processo de biofiltra??o, o ar polu?do ? transportado ao longo do leito onde o contaminante ? degradado. No biofilme, os poluentes presentes no efluente gasoso ser?o a fonte de carbono e energia para os microrganismos e ap?s serem metabolizados ser?o transformados em CO2, ?gua e biomassa. O leito filtrante deve ser caracterizado por propriedades f?sicas e mec?nicas como estrutura, fra??o de vazios, ?rea especifica e resist?ncia ao fluxo gasoso. O principal objetivo deste trabalho de pesquisa foi a constru??o de um biofiltro e o estudo da degrada??o do etanol e tolueno, bem como a modelagem do processo. Luffa cylindrica ? uma fibra bastante encontrada no nordeste do Brasil e foi utilizada no presente trabalho como leito filtrante. Os par?metros e condi??es estudos foram: composi??o da solu??o nutriente; efeito da esp?cie de microrganismos, denominadas Pseudomanas putida e Rhodococcus rhodochrous; composi??o do efluente gasoso; taxa de fluxo gasoso e carga de entrada do COV. O biofiltro operou em regime difusional, sendo os melhores resultados para a capacidade de remo??o foram obtidos quando utilizado o cons?rcio de microrganismos de Pseudomanas putida e de Rhodococcus rhodochrous, com uma vaz?o volum?trica de ar de 1 m3.h-1 e raz?o molar nitrog?nio/fosforo N/P=2 na solu??o nutriente. A m?xima capacidade de elimina??o foi de 90 g.m-3.h-1 para o etanol e 50 g.m-3.h-1 para o tolueno. Constatou-se que o tolueno tem efeito inibit?rio sobre a degrada??o do etanol, quando os dois VOCs est?o presentes no mesmo efluente, houve uma queda de 40% na remo??o do etanol. A Luffa cylindrica n?o apresentou grandes valores de perda de carga. Os modelos de Ottengraf e van Lith representaram bem os resultados obtidos para o etanol e tolueno, respectivamente. A aplica??o do modelo transiente evidenciou uma aproxima??o satisfat?ria entre os resultados experimentais obtidos para a biofiltra??o de vapores de etanol e tolueno e aqueles previstos pelo referido modelo