This work investigated the combined technology of adsorption on hydrophobic molecular sieves (zeolites) and direct UV (254 nm) photolysis for removing estrone (E1) from water. The target compound estrone belongs to the group of endocrine-disruptor compounds (EDCs) that are raising more and more concern due to increasing evidence of their adverse estrogenic effects on aquatic organisms and humans. Current wastewater treatment processes remove less than 80% of estrone on average. However, because of its strong biological potency, small amounts are still able to exert adverse estrogenic effects on aquatic systems. Consequently, advanced treatment technologies have been investigated in the hope of reaching higher removal efficiency. Adsorption of estrogens on hydrophobic zeolites in this work is a potential new alternative. Based on the hydrophobic nature of estrogens including E1, two types of zeolites, dealuminated Y (DAY) and silicalite-1, and a type of granular activated carbon Centaur® activated carbon (GAC) were evaluated for adsorption capacity. The results demonstrated that DAY is the best adsorbent for E1 in that 99% E1 can be removed by DAY. Silicalite-1 was the least effective. Moreover, adsorption of E1 to DAY is much faster. Estrone reached adsorption equilibrium in 4 hours on DAY versus 8 days for GAC. The adsorption data of DAY for E1 were fit to the Freundlich and Langmuir equations and the maximum adsorption capacity is estimated as 74 mg E1/g DAY. Direct UV photolysis of E1 in solution was also evaluated. Short-wave UV (ë = 254 nm) degraded E1 in solution much more effectively than long-wave UV-light (ë = 365 nm). No significant increase in degradation of E1 in UV photolysis was found with the addition of hydrogen peroxide. The regeneration of E1-contaminated DAY was investigated by a series of adsorption/direct UV (ë = 254nm) irradiation cycles. No significant deterioration of adsorption capacity of DAY was observed over nine adsorption/regeneration cycles.

The ubiquitous use of antibiotics has led to an increasing number of antibioticresistant bacterial strains, including strains that are multidrug resistant, pathogenic, or both. Numerous studies have been conducted showing the presence of antibioticresistance genes (ARGs) and antibiotic-resistant and multidrug resistant bacteria in wastewater and drinking water treatment plants. There is also evidence to suggest that ARGs spread to the environment, and to humans and animals, through wastewater effluents. The overall objective of this study was to investigate the effect of UV light disinfection on ARGs and antibiotic resistant bacteria. Wastewater effluent samples from a wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) in Texas were evaluated for differences in abundance and diversity of tetracycline resistant bacteria before and after UV treatment. The effects of photoreactivation or dark repair on the reactivation of bacteria present in WWTP effluent after UV disinfection were also examined. Culture based methods were used to characterize viable heterotrophic, tetracycline resistant heterotrophic, E. coli, and tetracycline resistant E. coli bacteria present before and after UV treatment. Molecular methods were used to characterize the diversity of organisms present and to test for the presence of tet(Q), a tetracycline resistance gene associated with human origins. UV disinfection was found to be as effective at reducing concentrations of resistant heterotrophs and E. coli as it was at reducing total bacterial concentrations. The lowest survival ratio following UV disinfection was observed in tetracycline-resistant E. coli, showing it to be particularly susceptible to UV treatment. Photoreactivation and dark repair rates were found to be comparable to each other for all bacterial populations. UV disinfection was found to significantly alter the community composition of tetracycline-resistant bacteria, though it did not have the same effect on the total bacterial community.

No description available.

Exposure to UV radiation is known to result in the development of skin cancer and the use of protectants m the form of topically applied sunscreens is becoming widespread. The compounds used within sunscreen formulations are subject to stringent tests and must be approved for use by such bodies as COLIPA (EC), or the FDA (U.S.). Despite these testing procedures the photochemical and photophysical properties of many of the active ingredients are poorly understood and not well documented. This study presents the results of detailed photophysical investigations of two sunscreen agents. Menthyl anthranilate is currently approved for use m commercially available formulations by the FDA, and N-acetyl-menthyl anthranilate has been synthesised as an analogue of N-acetyl-homomenthyl anthranilate, a compound approved for use by COLIPA until 1989. This work has highlighted some disturbing properties of these compounds. Following absorption of light both compounds fluoresce m UV-A region. Population of the triplet state also occurs to a significant extent, producing long lived species which are readily quenched by oxygen generating singlet oxygen, a potentially damaging species that has been linked to DNA damage. Furthermore, the triplet state energy of N-acetyl-menthyl anthranilate has been shown to be -315 kJmol(^-1)"', high enough to sensitise the formation of thymine dimers m the skin, another potential source of DNA damage. A thorough understanding of the behaviour of sunscreen formulations m contact with skin is vital. In vivo studies are made difficult due to restrictions in the sampling methods for currently used spectroscopic techniques such as UV and fluorescence. This work demonstrates the use of infixed spectroscopy, utilising an ATR probe and a flat ATR crystal, to analyse sunscreen formulations present on skin at normal usage levels. The technique has been used successfully to identify the individual active components within the formulations, probe the water-resistance properties and monitor changes that occur within the formulations following irradiation. A relationship between the IR absorbance values and Sun Protection Factor (SPF) values of any given formulation has been demonstrated and this has been used to test the water resistance claims of the manufacturers.

No description available.

Universiẗat, Diss., 2004--Jena.

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abstract: Encapsulant is a key packaging component of photovoltaic (PV) modules, which protects the solar cell from physical, environmental and electrical damages. Ethylene-vinyl acetate (EVA) is one of the major encapsulant materials used in the PV industry. This work focuses on indoor accelerated ultraviolet (UV) stress testing and characterization to investigate the EVA discoloration and delamination in PV modules by using various non-destructive characterization techniques, including current-voltage (IV) measurements, UV fluorescence (UVf) and colorimetry measurements. Mini-modules with glass/EVA/cell/EVA/backsheet construction were fabricated in the laboratory with two types of EVA, UV-cut EVA (UVC) and UV-pass EVA (UVP). The accelerated UV testing was performed in a UV chamber equipped with UV lights at an ambient temperature of 50°C, little or no humidity and total UV dosage of 400 kWh/m2. The mini-modules were maintained at three different temperatures through UV light heating by placing different thickness of thermal insulation sheets over the backsheet. Also, prior to thermal insulation sheet placement, the backsheet and laminate edges were fully covered with aluminum tape to prevent oxygen diffusion into the module and hence the photobleaching reaction. The characterization results showed that mini-modules with UV-cut EVA suffered from discoloration while the modules with UV-pass EVA suffered from delamination. UVf imaging technique has the capability to identify the discoloration region in the UVC modules in the very early stage when the discoloration is not visible to the naked eyes, whereas Isc measurement is unable to measure the performance loss until the color becomes visibly darker. YI also provides the direct evidence of yellowing in the encapsulant. As expected, the extent of degradation due to discoloration increases with the increase in module temperature. The Isc loss is dictated by both the regions – discolored area at the center and non-discolored area at the cell edges, whereas the YI is only determined at the discolored region due to low probe area. This led to the limited correlation between Isc and YI in UVC modules. In case of UVP modules, UV radiation has caused an adverse impact on the interfacial adhesion between the EVA and solar cell, which was detected from UVf images and severe Isc loss. No change in YI confirms that the reason for Isc loss is not due to yellowing but the delamination. Further, the activation energy of encapsulant discoloration was estimated by using Arrhenius model on two types of data, %Isc drop and ΔYI. The Ea determined from the change in YI data for the EVA encapsulant discoloration reaction without the influence of oxygen and humidity is 0.61 eV. Based on the activation energy determined in this work and hourly weather data of any site, the degradation rate for the encaspulant browning mode can be estimated. / Dissertation/Thesis / Masters Thesis Chemical Engineering 2018