Pollution prevention is promoted by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and other governmental agencies as a method of reducing the generation of wastes and pollutants. Pollution prevention is also called source reduction because it reduces wastes early in the production process. Source reduction has been used by some industries to comply with governmental regulations and decrease costs associated with the management of hazardous materials. Nationally, the electronics industry generates a large quantity of hazardous waste. Similarly in Oregon, the electronics industry has recently been identified by the DEQ as one of the top five polluters in the state. The purpose of this research was to identify pollution prevention strategies that are currently being used by the electronics industry in Oregon and to assess the industry's interest in switching to less hazardous practices. A questionnaire was distributed to 180 businesses, which included all industries affiliated with the Oregon Electronics Association and additional electronics firms listed in Oregon phone directories. From those responding to the survey, the results indicated that electronics organizations in Oregon manufacture a wide variety of products including circuit boards, cable assemblies, software, laser equipment, printers, and control panels. Over half of those participating in the survey reported that the largest quantity of hazardous materials were generated early in the manufacturing process. Forty-seven percent of the respondents indicated they had attempted incorporating less hazardous compounds to those used previously. Common problems encountered which discouraged the industry from switching to less hazardous products or processes were revealed by the participants to include: The new product/process did not work as well (37%), did not believe current practices were harmful (18%), cost factors (14%), pressure from governmental agencies (3%), and other factors (28%). Fifty percent of those responding revealed that their company recycles materials within the facility. Participants indicated the products which were most likely to be recycled included cardboard (19%), office paper (18%), tin/aluminum (13%), newspaper (12%), and used chemicals (11%). The largest number of participants (43%) defined "green" or "environmentally safe/friendly" products as those that contain no known hazardous chemicals. Using this chosen definition, sixty-five percent of those responding indicated their organization did use these "green" products. It was indicated by those returning completed surveys that one reason the industry has attempted to incorporate less hazardous products and processes into their production process is primarily because of long term financial benefits. Other factors influencing the use of less hazardous materials included ethical concerns and the desire to find safer products that work as well as current products. A vast majority of respondents indicated more should be done in the area of pollution prevention and want leadership to come from within the industry itself. It is recommended that top executives in this field meet to share methods of overcoming obstacles to pollution prevention, clarify current terminology as it relates to new products, develop a system of rewarding those who are engaging in pollution prevention activities and promote technology transfer. / Graduation date: 1995

This project explored the feasibility of using fungi in a constructed wetland for the treatment of pulp mill effluent. The effluent is high in dissolved lignins (some of which are chlorinated), which have proven very difficult to degrade biologically. Mindful of work done with the (terrestrial) white rot fungi, especially Phanerochaete chtysosporium, the question is asked, Is there a fungus which can tolerate submerged conditions while degrading a significant amount of dissolved lignins? Two fungal species with lignin-degrading capability were isolated from submerged films in a log pond. These fungi have been evaluated for decolorization potential under different environmental conditions. Results of laboratory experiments show that one of these fungi, identified as Acremonium sp., was capable of 44% decolorization of pulp mill effluent under sterile, submerged, room temperature conditions. The fungal decolorization was evaluated both in floating cultures and as a film inoculated on wood chips. In addition, bench-scale examination of the potential of this fungus to decolorize pulp mill effluent in non-sterile conditions was completed. / Graduation date: 1994

Thesis (Ph. D.) -- University of Tennessee, Knoxville, 2006. / Title from title page screen (viewed on Jan. 31, 2007). Thesis advisor: Paul R. Bienkowski. Vita. Includes bibliographical references.

In this research, we consider production/inventory management decisions of a rmthat sells its product in two market segments during a nite planning horizon. In thebeginning of each period, the rm makes a decision on how much to produce basedon the production capacity and the current on-hand inventory available. After theproduction is made at the beginning of the period, the rm rst satises the stochasticdemand from customers in its primary market. Any primary market demand thatcannot be satised is lost. After satisfying the demand from the primary market, ifthere is still inventory on hand, all or part of the remaining products can be sold ina secondary market with ample demand at a lower price. Hence, the second decisionthat the rm makes in each period is how much to sell in the secondary market, orequivalently, how much inventory to carry to the next period.The objective is to maximize the expected net revenue during a nite planninghorizon by determining the optimal production quantity in each period, and theoptimal inventory amount to carry to the next period after the sales in primary andsecondary markets. We term the optimal inventory amount to be carried to the nextperiod as \economic retention quantity". We model this problem as a nite horizonstochastic dynamic program. Our focus is to characterize the structure of the optimalpolicy and to analyze the system under dierent parameter settings. Conditioning on given parameter set, we establish lower and upper bounds on the optimal policyparameters. Furthermore, we provide computational tools to determine the optimalpolicy parameters. Results of the numerical analysis are used to provide furtherinsights into the problem from a managerial perspective.

Le thème général de cette thèse porte sur le comportement des sols et des roches tendres partiellement saturés. Cette condition de saturation partielle entraîne une complexification du comportement et une augmentation des couplages entre les différents phénomènes existants. Nous avons travaillé sur deux applications différentes qui présentent en fait beaucoup de similitudes. Ce travail s'est effectué principalement dans le code aux éléments finis LAGAMINE. Le premier domaine d'étude concerne le stockage de déchets nucléaires de haute activité. Pour ces derniers, le concept de dépôts dans des couches géologiques profondes a été développé afin de protéger les êtres humains et leur environnement des effets néfastes de la radioactivité. L'idée est de construire un système de galeries dans lesquelles seront placés les déchets vitrifiés ; une barrière d'étanchéité ouvragée (généralement des blocs d'argile compactée) remplira le reste de la galerie et assurera un complément à une barrière géologique naturelle. Pour dimensionner ce système complexe, il est nécessaire de bien connaître les caractéristiques hydrogéologiques, thermiques, mécaniques, chimiques et biologiques, ainsi que de comprendre les processus couplés qui ne manqueront pas de s'y développer. C'est la raison pour laquelle se sont créés des URL (Underground Research Laboratories) dans les couches géologiques potentielles, comme le SCK-CEN à Mol. Les modèles numériques viennent en complément des études expérimentales réalisées dans ces laboratoires et aident à la compréhension des mesures effectuées. En effet, le comportement de la barrière d'étanchéité est très complexe, impliquant des phénomènes thermo-hydro-mécaniques prenant place durant l'échauffement (les déchets dégagent toujours une certaine quantité d'énergie) et l'hydratation (par la formation hôte) de la barrière argileuse ouvragée. Dans ce cadre, nous avons développé un modèle d'écoulement multiphasique avec changement de phase ; il permet d'étudier les transferts hydriques et de chaleur se produisant dans la zone proche de la galerie. Les couplages sont nombreux : les variations de température influencent les propriétés des fluides, ces derniers transportent de la chaleur lors de leur déplacement (flux convectifs), ces conditions de saturation partielle (liées à la succion) induisent également des modifications du comportement mécanique de l'argile. Enfin, dans ces milieux très peu perméables, la prise en compte des transferts hydriques en phase vapeur est primordiale. Ces développements ont été réalisés dans le cadre du projet européen CATSIUS CLAY, ce qui nous a permis une comparaison avec d'autres codes de calculs et la validation de notre travail. Le deuxième domaine d'étude est la subsidence des réservoirs pétroliers de mer du Nord. En effet, certains réservoirs se situent dans des couches de craie à plusieurs milliers de mètres sous le niveau de la mer et ils sont exploités à partir d'installations off-shores. La production du pétrole induit une déplétion du réservoir qui s'accompagne d'une compaction ; cette dernière se répercute jusqu'au fond marin et cela met en danger les stations off-shores. La solution actuellement mise en uvre est l'injection d'eau dans le réservoir afin de le repressuriser et de diminuer ainsi la compaction. Malheureusement, cela a provoqué dans ces formations crayeuses un tassement supplémentaire ! Toutefois, celui-ci n'a pas que des aspects négatifs ; la compaction additionnelle permet une récupération secondaire du pétrole, qui n'aurait pu être obtenue autrement sinon. Il est donc très intéressant de pouvoir contrôler le tassement des couches réservoir. Dans le cadre des projets européens PASACHALK, nous avons développé une loi constitutive élastoplastique suivant l'idée que la sensibilité à l'eau d'une craie initialement saturée d'huile est reliée à l'effet de la succion. Cette dernière comprend des effets purement capillaires mais d'autres également (osmotiques par exemple). Nous avons donc construit un modèle multimécanisme avec influence de la succion, en utilisant les outils et concepts développés en mécanique des sols non-saturés (l'argile notamment). On voit dès lors que les modèles de l'argile de scellement et ceux de la craie de réservoir présentent de nombreuses similitudes ! Cette recherche a été facilitée par le fait qu'une craie, similaire à celles des réservoirs de Mer du Nord, affleure dans notre pays ; on l'exploite notamment dans la carrière de Lixhe, en région liégeoise. Cette craie possède les mêmes caractéristiques et propriétés que celles des formations du réservoir. La seule différence réside dans le fait qu'il n'y a jamais eu de pétrole dans ses pores ! L'analyse de l'ensemble des expérimentations réalisées sur ce matériau, nous a permis de mettre en évidence les caractéristiques du comportement de la craie de manière à calibrer notre loi. Enfin, des essais d'injection dans des échantillons nous fournissent un moyen de validation de nos modèles. Ainsi, nous avons réalisé des simulations à l'échelle du réservoir qui ont confirmé que la variation de succion est bien une explication de certaines compactions dans les réservoirs pétroliers.

Waste generation rates continue to grow around the world, creating a need for more comprehensive waste management strategies to meet sustainability needs. Remote islands are profoundly affected by the growth in waste and have a critical need to develop policy that addresses their unique characteristics, such as limited land space for waste disposal, higher per capita waste generation rates due to tourism, and lack of opportunities for interstate waste transport. This case study investigated one Hawaiian County's collaborative approach to adopting a new solid waste management policy. Ostrom's Institutional Analysis and Development Framework (IAD) was utilized to examine the facilitating and impeding institutional factors that affect the adoption of more sustainable waste management approaches on remote islands. The impeding factors that created barriers to sustainability included blueprint models, lack of financial incentives, financial cost, infrastructure, exclusion from waste services, remoteness, and illegal dumping. Facilitating factors were environmental concerns and exemplary waste examples by other communities. Recommendations are provided for addressing these barriers and using the available opportunities to work toward greater sustainable resource management on remote islands.

Graduation date: 1994

Deep crystalline rock formations of low permeability have been identified as a possible geological medium for high-level radioactive waste disposal. In order for the safe disposal of radioactive waste, a site characterization must be performed. A comparison of site characterization methods found out-diffusion methods to be the most viable technique for pore fluid extraction. Crush and leach, chemical and isotopic analyses such as, Cl-, 37Cl, 18O, 2H and 87Sr were valuable in characterizing the signature/origin of the pore fluids. Variations in the signatures of the pore fluids were observed and attributed to small differences in heterogeneity within the host rock and water to rock interactions. Estimates of the rate of effective diffusivity (De) were evaluated experimentally and with an analytical solution. Modelled De values were much greater than those determined experimentally, suggesting that the analytical solution provides a more conservative estimate of De for assessing radionuclide migration.

China has long faced the exponential increase of wastewater. Therefore, sludge as the byproduct of wastewater treatment is a worldwide and difficult problem to treat and dispose. Many cities in China are trying to find an appropriate method of achieving this. However, due to a lack of funding, technology and research, some methods suitable for local conditions are still not available, even in the most modern and biggest cities in China. This thesis is intended to describe the method used for the treatment and disposal of sludge from industries now in Shanghai, Beijing and Chongqing. Compared with these three cities, Beijing produces more sludge per day, while Shanghai has the least sludge production. Further, the industrial waste piping system is not separated from the domestic system in these three cities. Moreover, the percentage of treated sludge is still very low in Shanghai, Beijing and Chongqing. Among these three cities, even the highest treatment rate of sludge is 35.41% (Beijing). The lowest is only 10.08% (Chongqing). Considering that much more sludge will be produced in the next a few years, the current situation in these three cities presents a stern challenge. Also, a calculation about the cost of disposal of sludge in these cities is included in this thesis. Incineration is most expensive method of disposal of sludge in China, while composting is the cheapest. Considering the huge population, the current technology and the economic conditions in China, composting is the best option for the disposal of sludge.

Deep crystalline rock formations of low permeability have been identified as a possible geological medium for high-level radioactive waste disposal. In order for the safe disposal of radioactive waste, a site characterization must be performed. A comparison of site characterization methods found out-diffusion methods to be the most viable technique for pore fluid extraction. Crush and leach, chemical and isotopic analyses such as, Cl-, 37Cl, 18O, 2H and 87Sr were valuable in characterizing the signature/origin of the pore fluids. Variations in the signatures of the pore fluids were observed and attributed to small differences in heterogeneity within the host rock and water to rock interactions. Estimates of the rate of effective diffusivity (De) were evaluated experimentally and with an analytical solution. Modelled De values were much greater than those determined experimentally, suggesting that the analytical solution provides a more conservative estimate of De for assessing radionuclide migration.