O tratamento por técnicas eletroquímicas é provavelmente uma das metodologias mais prometedoras na descontaminação de sistemas particulados, sendo capaz da remoção, total ou parcial, de contaminantes como metais pesados, radionuclídeos, orgânicos e inorgânicos. Pelo uso de uma diferença de potencial elétrico em correntes baixas aplicadas através de pares de eletrodos, os contaminantes são movidos sob a ação do campo elétrico. A extração de impurezas pelo método eletrocinético é baseada na suposição que as moléculas estejam ou sejam evoluídos para a fase liquida. O ciclo completo envolve a adsorção, o transporte, a captação, e a remoção do contaminante dos meios porosos. Neste trabalho avaliou-se o emprego da técnica de eletroosmose na remoção de fenol em meios líquidos e porosos. O fenol foi escolhido por ser um composto altamente tóxico, proveniente de refinarias de óleos, industrias de tintas e principalmente pesticidas. Para a validação do processo em escala de laboratório, foi confeccionada uma célula eletroquímica para um volume de 700 cm3, com eletrodos de titânio. A concentração de fenol utilizada para este experimento foi constante de 11 mM. Água destilada, areia, pós de vidro e solo foram classificados, caracterizados e selecionados como meios porosos experimentais. As aplicações das cargas variaram de O a 120-140-240 minutos, sendo que o mapeamento do pH indicou eletromigração de espécies em todos os sistemas. Na eletroosmose temos o arraste das moléculas de fenol em direção ao catodo simultâneo à eletrólise da água, cujas concentrações relativas de contaminante foram avaliadas por espectroscopia de UV-Vis. A montagem dispõe de um reservatório para coleta de produtos de reação em cada eletrodo sendo possível a remoção do íon fenólico migrado. O processo apresentou eficiências variando de 40% a 60% na extração, dependendo das características do meio poroso. De um modo geral a técnica apresentou-se ecologicamente viável e econômica, como procedimento de remediação de solos e sistemas particulados diversos. / The use of electrochemical techniques is probably one of most promising technology for particulate system decontamination treatments. This methodology appears as able to remove heavy metals, radionucletides and organic and inorganic contaminations. By using an electric potential difference with low currents intensities through electrodes, the contaminants in the porous medium are dragged under electric field action. The contaminant removal is base on the supposition that the impurities are in solution or elute to the liquid phase. The whole cycle involves adsorption, transport, collection and removal of contaminants from the medium. In this work it was studied the use of the electroosmosis technique for removal of phenol from porous and aqueous medium. Phenol was chose because of its high toxicity and the regularly use in oil refineries, ink industries and pesticides. To validate the process, in laboratorial scale, an electrochemical cell of 700 cm3 volume, with titanium electrodes was constructed. The phenol concentration was 11 mM. Distillated water, sand, glass powder and sample of soil were classified, characterized and selected to constitute the porous media. The charge application time varied from 120 to 140 to 240 minutes and the pH mapping showed migration effect in ali of the systems. In the electroosmosis process we have the molecules of phenol dragged towards the cathode simultaneously to the water electrolysis. The relative concentrations of phenol were evaluated by UV-Vis spectroscopy. In the experimental setup a reservoir in each electrode was assembled in order to collect the reaction products. The process efficiencies are in a range from 40% to 60%, dependent of the porous medium characteristics. In a broad sense, the technique showed feasible as an economic and ecological procedure for soil and particulate system remediation.

A fibropapilomatose é uma doença multifatorial em tartarugas marinhas caracterizada por tumores cutâneos benignos. O surgimento da doença é atribuído à associação do Chelonid herpesvirus 5 (ChHV-5), à genética e à fatores ambientais. A tartaruga-verde (Chelonia mydas) é a espécie mais acometida pela doença, sendo esta uma das maiores ameaças à sua sobrevivência. Este estudo teve por objetivo detectar e mensurar seis elementos químicos inorgânicos: Arsênio (As), Cádmio (Cd), Chumbo (Pb), Selênio (Se), Zinco (Zn) e Mercúrio (Hg) em sangue de tartarugas-verdes (Chelonia mydas) capturadas vivas e tecidos (baço, rins, fígado, glândula de sal, musculatura esquelética e tecido ósseo) de necropsias realizadas em indivíduos encontrados mortos. Quatro localidades da costa brasileira foram amostradas: Almofala CE; Fernando de Noronha PE; Vitória ES e Ubatuba SP. Foram colhidas 233 amostras de sangue e 488 amostras de tecido entre março de 2012 e outubro de 2015. As amostras foram analisadas em um espectrômetro de massas com plasma indutivamente acoplado (ICP-MS). Os resultados das análises de sangue apontaram Fernando de Noronha como um possível grupo controle para estudos desta ordem. As e Se foram encontrados em Fernando de Noronha em níveis séricos muito baixos. Tartarugas-verdes das outras três localidades estudadas apresentaram uma diminuição desses elementos quando com sinais de FP, ao mesmo tempo em que apresentaram concentrações maiores de algum elemento químico tóxico, como Pb e Hg. Quanto aos resultados obtidos com amostras teciduais, as tartarugas-verdes com sinais de FP apresentam menores concentrações de As e Se em todos os órgãos analisados, ao mesmo tempo que apresentam maior concentração de Pb em fígado, rins e ossos / Fibropapillomatosis is a multifactorial disease of sea turtles characterized by benign cutaneous tumors. The development of this disease is attributed to the association of Chelonid herpesvirus 5 (ChHV-5), to genetics and environmental factors. The green turtle (Chelonia mydas) is the species most affected by fibropapillomatosis, one of the biggest threats to the survival. The aim of this study was to detect and quantify six inorganic chemical elements: Arsenic (As), Cadmium (Cd), Lead (Pb), Selenium (Se), Zinc (Zn) and Mercury (Hg) in blood samples of green turtles trapped alive, and tissue samples (spleen, kidneys, liver, salt glands, skeletal muscles and bone tissue) collected during necropsies of carcasses. The samples was collected in four different locations of the Brazilian coast: Almofala Ceará; Fernando de Noronha Pernambuco; Vitória Espírito Santo e Ubatuba São Paulo. We collected 233 blood samples and 488 tissue samples between March 2012 and October 2015. Samples were analysed by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) techniques. The results of the blood analyses indicated Fernando de Noronha as a possible control group for studies of this nature. As and Se were observed in Pernambuco (Fernando de Noronha) in very low blood levels. Green turtles from the three other locations presented decreased levels of the same elements in cases with signs of FP, while presenting higher concentrations of some of the toxic chemical elements, such as Pb and Hg. The results obtained from tissue samples showed that green turtles with signs of FP present lower As and Se in all analysed organs, and higher [Pb] in liver, kidneys and bone tissues

O presente trabalho estuda a degradação fotocatalítica da nicotina em solução aquosa, um alcaloide altamente tóxico que tem sido detectado em efluentes, águas subterrâneas e água mineral. Os experimentos foram realizados em um reator batelada sob irradiação ultravioleta, tendo sido avaliadas três principais variáveis: concentração inicial do contaminante, concentração de catalisador e pH inicial da solução. Foram realizados dois planejamentos de experimentos para os catalisadores comerciais ZnO e TiO2, com o objetivo de encontrar a melhor condição para promover a degradação da nicotina em água. Outros catalisadores, preparados a partir de resíduos industriais e laboratoriais, foram testados nas condições otimizadas. O método analítico empregado para quantificar a nicotina nas amostras foi a cromatografia líquida de alta eficiência, o que permitiu registrar a formação de intermediários e subprodutos de reação. Os resultados experimentais demostraram que a degradação da nicotina por fotocatálise heterogênea é um processo bastante eficiente. Em ambos os planejamentos, o pH foi a variável que exerceu o maior efeito sobre a degradação, sendo este fortemente positivo. Já a concentração inicial de nicotina exerceu efeito negativo sobre a resposta e a concentração de catalisador em suspensão exibiu um ponto ótimo, que correspondeu a 0,91 g.L-1 para o ZnO, e 1,20 g.L-1 para o TiO2. Ensaios foram realizados nas condições otimizadas encontradas, onde cerca de 98% da molécula foi degradada utilizando ZnO em suspensão e 88% empregando TiO2, em uma hora de reação. A degradação fotocatalítica da nicotina demonstrou seguir uma cinética de pseudoprimeira ordem dentro do tempo de reação de 60 minutos, para os dois catalisadores comerciais. Entre os catalisadores não convencionais que foram testados, aquele que demonstrou o maior percentual de degradação foi obtido a partir de resíduo de uma indústria petroquímica, cerca de 43%. / The present work studies the photocatalytic degradation of nicotine in aqueous solution. This alkaloid is highly toxic and it has been detected in wastewater, groundwater and mineral water. The experiments were performed in a batch reactor under ultraviolet radiation. Three main variables of process were evaluated: initial concentration of pollutant, catalyst concentration and initial pH of the solution. Two experimental designs were performed for commercial catalysts ZnO and TiO2. The purpose was to find the best condition to promote the nicotine degradation in water. Other catalysts prepared from industrial and laboratory waste were tested under the optimized conditions. Analytical method used to quantify nicotine and its degradation products in all samples was high performance liquid chromatography. Experimental results showed that nicotine degradation by heterogeneous photocatalysis is a very efficient process. In both designs, initial pH was the most significant variable which has a strong positive effect. Initial nicotine concentration showed a negative effect, and catalyst concentration exhibited an optimal value for both commercial catalysts: 0,91 g.L-1 using ZnO, and 1,20 g.L-1 with TiO2. At the best conditions, about 98% of the molecule was degraded using ZnO and 88% with TiO2. Photocatalytic nicotine degradation followed a pseudo first order kinetic until 60 minutes of reaction for both commercial catalysts. Among the non-conventional catalysts tested, the one prepared from a petrochemical industry residue exhibited the highest photocatalytic degradation, about 43%.

Por muitos anos, os dejetos brutos de suínos foram inadequadamente destinados em áreas vizinhas às granjas, havendo pouca informação quanto aos danos causados pela elevada carga orgânica, patógenos e outros contaminantes como N, K, Na, Cu e Zn. Contudo, o uso agrícola do efluente tratado pode promover o uso racional da água e de insumos, melhorias na fertilidade do solo e na produtividade. Nesse contexto, avaliou-se o tratamento dos dejetos em biodigestor anaeróbio e os efeitos da irrigação de dois cultivos de milho com os efluentes tratados. Os dejetos brutos (EB) foram peneirados e tratados no biodigestor, gerando o efluente tratado (EBL) que foi diluído (1:50, v:v) (EBLD), simulando etapas posteriores do tratamento. Periodicamente, caracterizaram-se os efluentes e avaliou-se a eficiência do tratamento. Para avaliar a depuração da carga orgânica dos efluentes em um solo argiloso e outro arenoso, realizou-se teste de respirometria, quantificando o C-CO2 liberado ao longo de 172 dias. Conduziu-se ensaio de campo delineado em blocos casualizados, avaliando os seguintes tratamentos ao longo dos cultivos do milho safra e safrinha: T1-controle; T2-fertilização mineral sem irrigação, T3-irrigação com EBL, T4-irrigação com EBLD, T5-fertilização mineral com irrigação com água. Utilizaram-se tensiômetros para avaliar a necessidade de irrigação. Avaliaram-se os efeitos sobre a qualidade e fertilidade do solo, volatilização de nitrogênio, nutrição e produtividade da cultura. O EB não se enquadrou aos limites estabelecidos para uso agrícola de resíduos. O EBL enquadrou-se a esses limites, apresentando menores valores de DBO, DQO, sólidos, teores de P, Ca, Cu, Zn, Fe e Mn, e ausência de coliformes fecais e Salmonella. Contudo, apresentou valores elevados de CE, Na e N. No teste de respirometria, obteve-se maior taxa de degradação do material orgânico adicionado ao Argissolo em comparação ao Latossolo, verificando a ocorrência do efeito \"priming\" no Argissolo. As maiores perdas por volatilização de N ocorreram de 2 a 3 dias após a aplicação de 33,3 mm do EBL, as quais foram baixas e menores em relação às obtidas para fertilizantes nitrogenados. A irrigação com EBL aumentou a condutividade elétrica nas duas camadas de solo no primeiro cultivo, e no segundo cultivo houve sua redução. Os efluentes não alteram os teores disponíveis e totais de Cu e Zn no solo. Houve aumento nos teores de K trocável e na solução do solo da camada superficial, em função do uso do EBL. Após o segundo cultivo, os teores de N-NH4+ e N-NO3- foram maiores na camada subsuperficial de T3 (EBL). Para a safrinha, o uso do EBL aumentou os teores de N na folha e no grão. Já para safra, o uso do EBL aumentou apenas o teor de N no grão. Não houve alteração nos teores de micronutrientes no tecido vegetal. As produtividades de T3 (EBL) foram iguais a 6,7 t ha-1 para a safrinha e a 13,1 t ha-1 para a safra. Além disso, o uso do EBL no solo aumentou o teor de matéria seca e o comprimento de espiga, indicando suprimento de água e nutrientes para os dois cultivos de milho / For several years, the swine manures were improperly applied in soil of areas near to swine farms, without previous treatment. Additionally, there is little information about the contamination level caused by high organic load, pathogens, and high concentrations of N, K, Na, Cu and Zn present in swine waste. However, the treated swine wastewater use can promote the rational use of water and agricultural inputs, improving soil fertility and crop productivity. In this context, it aimed to evaluate the swine liquid waste treatment through the anaerobic biodigester and the irrigation effects of two maize cultivations with treated effluents. The liquid swine waste (EB) was sieved and, after, it was treated in biodigester, generating the treated efluente (EBL). The EBL was diluted (1:50, v:v) (EBLD), in order to simulate subsequent phases of treatment. Periodically, the effluents were characterized in order to evaluate the treatment efficiency. For evaluate the organic load depuration in a clayey and sandy soils, it was performed the respirometry test, quantifying the C-CO2 released during 172 days. It was conducted the field experiment designed in randomized blocks, evaluating the following treatments during winter and summer maize cultivations: T1- control; T2-mineral fertilization without irrigation; T3-irrigation with EBL; T4-irrigation with EBLD; T5-mineral fertilization with water irrigation. It was used tensiometers for evaluate the irrigation needs. It was evaluated the effects about soil fertility and quality, nitrogen loses by volatilization, culture nutrition and productivity. The EB didn\'t presented limits in accordance to legislations about agricultural use. The EBL presented reduced values of BOD, COD, volatile solids, contents of P and Ca, and absence of fecal coliforms and Salmonella, they being in accordance to limits established by these legislations. However, the values of CE and Na were higher than these limits. In respirometry test, it was observed higher organic material degradation for Ultisol in comparison to Oxisol and, verifying the \"priming\" effect for Ultisol. The higher losses by N volatilization occurred between 2 and 3 days after application of 33.3 mm of EBL, those were lower in relation to losses obtained from mineral fertilizers. In soil, the EBL irrigation increased the CE in first cultivation, which reduced after the second cultivation. There were not changes in available and total contents of Cu and Zn in soil. There were increases in exchangeable K contents and in soil solution of superficial soil depth. After the second cultivation, the contents of N-NH4+ e N-NO3- were higher in subsuperficial depth of T3 (EBL). For winter cultivation, the EBL increased the N contents in leaf and grains. Already for summer cultivation, the EBL increased only the N contents in grains. There were not changes in micronutrients contents of vegetal tissues. The productivities of T3 (EBL) were equals to 6.7 t ha-1 for winter maize and 13.1 t ha-1 for summer maize. Furthermore, the EBL increased the dry matter and length of ear, verifying that EBL supplied nutrients and water need to maize cultivations

Respirable dust, carbon dioxide, ammonia, hydrogen sulfide, and carbon monoxide concentrations were measured using fixed-area monitoring and contaminant mapping in a 19–crate farrowing room during the winter. Direct–reading instruments were used with fixed–area stations and contaminant mapping to evaluate concentrations during five days over a period of a three–week farrowing cycle. Concentrations were evaluated to determine the effect of the pit ventilation on contaminant concentrations, a change in concentration occurred over a sample day, and to determine if three data collection methods produce different daily respirable dust concentrations. Pit ventilation did have a significant effect on contaminant concentration in a farrowing barn during winter. Compared to when the pit fan was on, mean area contaminant concentration, with the exception of CO, was significantly higher when the pit fan was turned off (p<0.001). Mean respirable dust concentration was 79% higher, CO2 concentration was 35% higher, NH3 increased from 0.03 ppm to 10.8 ppm, and H2S concentrations increased from 0.03 ppm to 0.67 ppm. A significant change in area respirable dust (p<0.001) and CO2 (p<0.001) mean concentrations occurred over time throughout the course of a sample day. Mean area respirable dust concentrations were highest in the beginning of the sample day and decreased by 77 % (pit fan off) to 87% (pit fan on) over a five–hour sample period. Higher concentrations were likely attributed to the feeding period that occurred early in the day. When the pit fan was turned off, mean area CO2 concentrations increased by 24% by the end of the sample day due to the inefficient ventilation and the constant production of CO2 generated by the swine. Finally, comparing the three data collection methods produced similar results concerning the ranking of the daily mean concentrations of respirable dust; however, differences were seen in the magnitude of the daily average respirable dust concentrations across the three data collection methods, which might lead to different interpretations of risk. To ensure risk is not underestimated, multiple fixed–area monitors are recommended to characterize room concentrations. Throughout the study, contaminant concentration did not exceed regulatory or international consensus standards; however, recommended agricultural health limits suggested in the literature were exceeded for respirable dust, CO2, and NH3. These findings indicate the need to consider personal exposures to those working in farrowing barns and control options to reduce these contaminant concentrations in production facilities.

Os metais potencialmente tóxicos são elementos de natureza não biodegradável, fácil absorção pelos organismos e com grande capacidade de bioacumulação e que, normalmente, estão presentes nos lixiviados de aterros sanitários. Por conta disso, as barreiras de baixa permeabilidade nessas estruturas são elementos fundamentais para proteção ambiental. Essas barreiras, comumente, são feitas de solos argilosos compactados (CCL), por atender aos requisitos de condutividade hidráulica (K) e retenção de contaminantes. Na ausência de solos argilosos, viabilizar o uso de solos arenosos para esta aplicação é de grande interesse. Por conta disso, a presente pesquisa teve por objetivo aplicar uma técnica de melhoria à solos arenosos, adicionando cimento e argila, para avaliar o comportamento de K e o Fator de Retardamento (Rd) de contaminantes nas misturas solo-cimento-caulim (SCC) e solo-cimento-bentonita (SCB). Para isso, foram realizados os ensaios de: caracterização física, físico-química e mineralógica do solo, dos materiais argilosos e das misturas; ensaio de coluna para avaliar K com a percolação de água e solução de CuCl2.2H2O (0,012M e 0,024M) e o Rd do Cu2+; e o ensaio de equilíbrio em lote (batch test), nas concentrações de 0,005M, 0,012M e 0,024M, para avaliar o Rd obtido e comparar com o Rd do ensaio de coluna. Ao avaliar K com a percolação de água, observou-se que se o teor de umidade aplicada for acima da umidade ótima da mistura, a eficiência da compactação é comprometida e faz com que os valores de K sejam maiores. As misturas SCB e SCC atenderam os requisitos de K normatizados para aplicação como barreiras de fundo em aterros sanitários, com valores médios de 3,7x10-10 e 5x10-10 m/s, respectivamente. Durante a percolação da solução contaminante, houve redução de K em SCC, e os valores se mantiveram estáveis ou com aumentos pouco expressivos em SCB. A adição de cimento fez com que a capacidade de troca catiônica das misturas se reduzisse, no entanto, tornou-as alcalinas, favorecendo a precipitação do Cu2+. Ao contrário dos CCL que tem a sorção como principal mecanismo de retenção de contaminantes, nas misturas SCC e SCB é a precipitação, para o caso de elementos sensíveis a mudanças de pH como o Cu2+. Isso foi observado pelos precipitados formados durante os ensaios de coluna e no batch test, pela demora para saída de Cu2+ nos efluentes do ensaio de coluna e pelos valores de Rd obtidos em ambos os ensaios para SCC e SCB. Como as duas misturas apresentaram desempenhos similares, nota-se que as características mineralógicas dos materiais argilosos tiveram pouca influência no desempenho de K e Rd das misturas, provavelmente relacionado aos efeitos expressivos do cimento para redução de K e ao favorecer a precipitação do Cu2+. Quando comparadas as barreiras de CCL e aos geocompostos bentoníticos, as misturas SCC e SCB apresentaram desempenhos similares e, por vezes, mais elevados quanto ao Rd, apesar de apresentar valores de K mais altos, mas que ainda assim atendem a norma. Logo, as misturas solo-cimento-argila mostrou ser uma alternativa com bom desempenho para aplicação de solos arenosos como barreiras de baixa permeabilidade. / Potentially toxic metals are non-biodegradable elements that are easily absorbed by organisms and have a high bioaccumulation capacity and are also present in the slurry of landfills. Because of this, the low permeability barriers in these structures are fundamental elements for environmental protection. These liners are commonly made from compacted clayey soils (CCL) because they meet the requirements of hydraulic conductivity (K) and retention of contaminants. In the absence of clayey soils, the use of sandy soils for this application is of great interest. Therefore, the present research aimed to apply an improvement technique to a sandy soil, adding cement and clay, to evaluate the aspects of K and the retardation factor (Rd) of contaminants in the soil-cement-kaolin (SCC) and soil-cement-bentonite (SCB). For this, the following tests were performed: physical, physico-chemical and mineralogical characterization of soil, clay materials and soil-cement-clay mixtures; column assay to evaluate K with the percolation of water and CuCl2.2H2O solution (0.012M and 0.024M) and Rd of Cu2+; and the batch test at concentrations of 0.005M, 0.012M and 0.024M were used to evaluate the Rd obtained and compare with Rd of the column assay. When evaluating K with water percolation, it was observed that if the moisture content applied is above the optimum humidity of the mixture, the compaction efficiency is compromised and causes the K values to be higher. SCB mixtures and SCC met the standard K requirements for application as background liners in sanitary landfills with a mean value of 3.7x10-10 and 5x10-10 m/s, respectively. During percolation of the contaminant solution, there was reduction of K in SCC, and the values remained stable or with a little expressive increases in SCB. The addition of cement caused the reduction of cation exchange capacity of the mixtures, however, made them alkaline, favouring the precipitation of Cu2+. Unlike the CCL, that has the sorption as the main mechanism of retention of contaminants, in the SCC and SCB mixtures is the precipitation, in the case of elements sensitive to changes of pH, like Cu2+. This was observed by the precipitates formed during the column tests and the batch test, the delay for Cu2+ exit in the column assay effluents and the Rd values obtained in both SCC and SCB tests. As the two mixtures presented similar performances, it isnoted that the mineralogical characteristics of the clayey materials had little influence on the K and Rd performance of the mixtures, probably related to the expressive effects of the cement for K reduction and favouring the precipitation of Cu2+. When CCL liners and bentonite geocompounds were compared with SCC and SCB mixtures, the soil-cement-clay mixtures showed similar and sometimes even higher performances for Rd, despite having higher K values than these but still meeting the standard. Therefore, soil-cement-clay mixtures showed to be a good performance alternative for the application of sandy soils as low permeability liners.

Phytoremediation is an innovative technology employing plants for reclamation of soils that have been polluted by industrial contaminants. While it is frequently slower than traditional physicochemical remediation techniques, there are, however, many significant advantages including simplicity, low cost, improvement of soil structure and microbiological fertility. While various hyperaccumulators have been reported from Europe and the USA, there is a need to identify Australian species. This study reports a number of metal accumulators following a soil and vegetation survey of two metal contaminated sites in New South Wales, the spoil (filtercake) heaps of the BHP (Broken Hill Propriety ) steelworks at Port Kembla and the abandoned mine at Sunny Corner. BHP is the largest manufacturer of steel in Australia. The Port Kembla is the largest single steel manufacturing site. Solid by-products from this site totalled 3.1 million tons in 1988. The Sunny Corner mine site was mainly a silver mine which operated over approximately 100 hectares 1184 to 1922 and produced over 100 tonnes of silver during that period. The soil and water in and around the site is heavily contaminated with metals and is distinctly acidic. It was concluded that Ricinus communis, Sonchus oleraceus, baeckea utilis, Poa labillardieri and Pinus radiata are options for heavy metal phytoremediation of contaminated Australian soils. Arbuscular Mycorrhizal infection (particular with Glomus and Gigaspora strains) should be promoted for optimum growth. / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

The Caspian region and specifically the Apsheron peninsula of Azerbaijan is known to be polluted with a variety of environmental contaminants, making risk assessment difficult. The wetlands of Sumgayit contain particularly complex mixtures of contaminants. Flow cytometry and the micronucleus assay were used to assess chromosomal damage in aquatic turtles and frogs inhabiting contaminated wetlands in Azerbaijan. By evaluating biomarkers that are indicative of somatic effects, elevated chromosomal damage was documented at several sites in Azerbaijan relative to reference sites. Sediment samples were analyzed for polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), organochlorines (OCs), and mercury to evaluate contaminant associations with genetic damage. Sediment samples revealed heterogeneous patterns of PAH and mercury concentrations throughout Sumgayit. Significant positive correlations were documented between both PAH and mercury sediment concentrations and chromosomal damage. Population genetic methods were employed to study the effects of long-term chronic contaminant exposure in marsh frogs from Sumgayit. The Sumgayit region has reduced levels of genetic diversity, likely due to environmental degradation. One of the most contaminated sites in Sumgayit, WTP, appears to be a source of new mutations as a result of an increased mutation rate. Finally, the Sumgayit region seems to act as an ecological sink, with levels of gene flow into the region exceeding gene flow out of the region. This study provides not only exposure and biomarker data, but also an integrated method for assessing the cumulative population impacts of contaminant exposure by studying both population genetic and evolutionary effects. The results presented here will be used in conjunction with those of ongoing research involving both wildlife and humans to develop comprehensive ecological and human risk assessments.

In this thesis the sink-effect in indoor materials wasstudied using mathematical modelling and experimental studies.The sink-effect is a concept which is commonly used tocharacterise the ability of different indoor materials to sorbcontaminants present in the indoor air. The sorption process ismore or less reversible, i.e. molecules sorbed in materials athigh contaminant concentrations may again be desorbed at lowerconcentrations. Knowledge of the sorption capacity of materialsand the rate at which sorption and desorption takes place is offundamental importance for mathematical simulation of indoorair quality. The aim of this work is to contribute withknowledge about how the sink-effect can be described inmathematical terms and how the interaction parametersdescribing the sorption capacity and sorption/desorptionkinetics can be determined. The work has been of amethodological nature. The procedure has been to set upphysically sound mathematical models of varying complexity andto develop small-scale chamber experiments. Two differentdynamic chamber methods have been used. One is based on amodified standard FLEC-chamber while the other uses a chamberwith two compartments, one on each side of the material. The"twin-compartment" method was designed due to the observationthat the contaminant readily permeated straight through theselected materials, which resulted in uncontrolled radiallosses in the FLEC-chamber. In order to be useful forcomparison between experiments and calculations and parameterfitting, the boundary conditions in the chambers must beprecisely known and controlled. This matter has shown to be themost crucial and difficult problem in the research. A varietyof mathematical models for the sink-effect have been proposed.In some models advanced fluid simulations were used in order totest the influence ofill-defined flow boundary conditions. Theaim of the modelling is to find a formulation with a minimum ofinteraction parameters, which is generally useful, i.e. both insmall-scale laboratory environments and in full-scale like anoffice room. Estimated model parameters are shown to be able toyield a reasonably good fit to experimental data for thesorption process but a less satisfactory fit for the desorptionprocess. <b>Keywords:</b>sink-effect, sorption, adsorption, diffusion,indoor air quality, volatile organic compounds, VOC,contaminants, building materials

I have studied persistent environmental pollutants in herring (Clupea harengus), in adult guillemot (Uria aalge) and in guillemot eggs from the Baltic Sea. The studied contaminants were organochlorines (OCs); dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethanes (DDTs), polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), hexachlorobenzene (HCB), hexachlorocyclohexanes (HCHs), and brominated flame retardants (BFRs); polybrominated diphenylethers (PBDEs) and hexabromocyclododecane (HBCD). The highest concentration in both species was shown by p,p′DDE with a concentration in guillemot egg (geometric mean (GM) with 95% confidence interval) of 18200 (17000 – 19600) ng/g lipid weight. The BFR with the highest concentration in guillemot egg was HBCD with a GM concentration of 140 (120 – 160) ng/g lw. To extract additional and essential information from the data, not possible to obtain using only univariate or bivariate statistics, I used multivariate data analysis techniques; principal components analysis (PCA), partial least squares regression (PLS), soft independent modelling of class analogy (SIMCA), and PLS discriminant analysis (PLS-DA). I found e.g.; that there are significant negative correlations between egg weight and the concentrations of HCB and p,p'DDE; that concentrations of OCs and BFRs in the organisms co-varied so that concentrations of OCs can be used to calculate concentrations of BFRs; and, that several contaminants (e.g. HBCD) had higher concentration in guillemot egg than in guillemot muscle, that several (e.g. BDE47) showed no concentration difference between muscle and egg and that one contaminant (BDE154) showed higher concentration in the guillemot muscles than in egg. In this thesis I developed a new method, “randomly sampled ratios” (RSR), to calculate biomagnification factors (BMFs) i.e. the ratio between the concentration of a contaminant in an organism and the concentration of the same contaminant in its food. With this new method BMFs are denoted with an estimate of variation. Contaminants that biomagnify are e.g., p,p′DDE, CB118, HCB, βHCH and all of the BFRs. Those that do not biomagnify are e.g., p,p′DDT, αHCH and CB101. Lastly, to investigate which of the contaminants descriptors (physical-chemical/other properties and characteristics) that correlates to the biomagnification of the contaminants, I modeled the contaminants’ respective BMFRSR versus ~100 descriptors and showed that ~20 descriptors in combination were important, either favoring or counteracting biomagnification between herring and guillemot.