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M.Tech. (Interior Design) / In an endeavor to achieve, the activities of many industries will need to transform and design is no exception. Commercial design has played a substantial role in contributing towards waste-generation, pollution and the exhaustion of non-renewable resources. Fundamental to achieving sustainable development is the need to determine design's contribution to economic growth in relationship to social development and environmental preservation, as these issues are completely interdependent (and need to be considered as such) if sustainability is ever to be achieved. Although much theoretical information about sustainable design has been made available, little evidence exists to prove that this theory is being put into practice, specifically in South Africa. It is also unlikely that the solutions engineered in some of the more developed countries can simply be transferred into the context of a developing nation with its own very specific social, economic and environmental conditions. This seems to justify the need to research practical and contextualized methods of implementing sustainable design theory. The main research methodology implemented in this project has taken the form of applied or practice-based research, in order to determine the feasibility of implementing established ecological design theories. Initially, theoretical research was conducted to establish the principles of sustainable design; these principles were then contextualized according to South African specific conditions and manifested in a practical application in the design and manufacture of artifacts. A consumer sampling was also undertaken to determine consumer response and economic viability of these products...

The current paper recycling processes are surveyed pointing out the major stages and the variety of chemical/mechanical treatments the fibres undergo. The reduction or replacement of chemical/mechanical treatments presents possible advantages in prolonging fibre life. The results from recycled office waste which has been treated with ultrasound show a change in the particle size distribution of toner particles - making these particles easier to remove using established flotation techniques. Particle size distributions were measured using image analysis on thin (20gsm) paper handsheets. To establish the affect of sonication on fibres, a variety of virgin fibres were obtained from UK Paper, Sittingbourne. Results from virgin fibres which have been treated using ultrasound indicate an absence of cutting compared to conventional techniques. Fibres were found to have the same average length (0.6mm) after ultrasound treatment as the control sample, refined fibres were reduced to approximately 0.3 mm in length. Freeness decreased in both virgin sonicated and refined sonicated samples. The decrease in freeness was accompanied by an increase in the strength properties of both categories of fibres. Experiments with a prepared office waste furnish showed that ultrasonic treatment could decrease the size distribution of fused toner particles. The control sample had an average size of 80.9 um, after 1 minute sonication this was decreased to 54.9) um, decreasing further to 46.8)um after 2 minutes sonication. After demonstrating that ultrasound could decrease the particle distribution of the prepared office waste a more realistic and variable furnish was used. The experiments were conducted at room temperature, 50°C and 75°C. These temperatures were chosen to study the behaviour of fused toners as it approaches and exceeds its glass transition point, essentially the melting point of an amorphous polymer. It was found that the toner is easier to remove as the glass transition temperature is approached. Ultrasound is effective in breaking up large toner particles and detaching particles smaller than 25 microns in diameter.

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<p>The research carried out and the results of the Master Thesis “Comparison of packaging collection systems in Latvia” give an overview about level of the development of packaging collection systems, as well as possible ways to improve their performance. </p><p>In Latvia, there are two packaging collection systems implemented for management of recyclable waste in different towns. In this study, sorted packaging collection system is described (advantages, disadvantages, costs of performance, the amount and quality of the collected material), followed by the corresponding description of the mixed packaging collection system. The systems are compared and ways to upgrade both systems are offered. </p><p>During the course of the thesis the author collected necessary information about the packaging recycling systems in Europe and Latvia, obtained the necessary details and information from the staff of the Ministry of Environment of Latvia and waste handling organizations and held a social enquiry. The information obtained during the research reveals data on the flow of the waste packaging and its components, as well as the activity of the residents in the recycling process. Data analysis made it possible to analyze the costs of integrating and maintaining the systems, as well as to propose the measures which can help to improve them in order to make their performance more effective and socially acceptable. The figures and information obtained during the research can be used for upgrading of the Waste management plans in the regions of Latvia or for a successful introduction of a new collection system in a town or region.</p><p>The results show that at the moment it is not possible to clearly state which one of the two systems is better for Latvia because performance of each system depends on a list of factors, such as social, e.g. residents’ involvement in the process, and economical factors. A conducted survey revealed that residents are more likely to participate in a recycling process if they do not have to sort packaging by types. Data analysis showed that there is a substantial difference in transportation and sorting expenses between these two systems, however this difference is too small to make any of the systems profitable for recovery of paper and plastic material. Only collection of glass material proved to be economically profitable in both systems.</p>

<p>Environment and sustainable development are very current topics in today's society, both</p><p>national and international. The government's bill 2004/05:150 ”Swedish environment objectives - a common commission” contains several environmental quality objectives, that in turn is divided up in smaller secondary objectives. One of the secondary objectives says: “Latest year 2010 shall at least 35% of the food waste from households, restaurants, largescale kitchens and shops be recycled through biological treatment. The objective intends source separated food wastes to composting at home as central treatment”.</p><p>The aim with the project is to investigate which initiatives are required in order for Halmstads municipality to achieve the secondary objective concerning 35% recycling of food wastes. During the sorting of household combustible waste in Halmstads municipality today, there is no sorting of food waste. This means that only food waste from restaurants and large-scale kitchens are collected for further biological treatment. Systems for handling waste are</p><p>complex and many factors play a part when choosing the most favourable collection system for each municipality.</p><p>An inventory shows that recycling of 5500 tons of food waste is required in order to fulfil the secondary objective. There are several different solutions to collect this amount. My proposal is to use a two vessel system in households, restaurants and large-scale kitchens. This means that the waste is separated into two different containers. The waste will be sorted into sealed plastic vessels of which one is for biological waste, and the other for combustible. In order to keep the two vessels a part, two different colours could be used. For example, a brown vessel for biological waste and a green one for combustible. The households should also be able to use home composting as a complement. At restaurants and large-scale kitchens there should be the possibility to an alternative collection through a garbage disposal unit with a container. When the vessels are emptied, the combustible waste goes to incineration and the food waste is taken to a biogas facility.</p>

Three experiments were conducted to study dietary effects on urea-nitrogen (N) recycling as a strategy to improve the efficiency of N utilization in ruminants. Experiment 1 examined the effects of feeding diets containing two levels of dietary crude protein (CP; 10.8 vs. 14.0%) and ruminally-degradable protein (RDP; 73.4 vs. 76.0% of CP) on urea-N recycling to the gastro-intestinal tract (GIT), N balance, and microbial protein production in beef heifers. Feeding the low CP diet decreased N intake (P < 0.01), ruminal ammonia-N (NH3-N) concentration (P < 0.01) and urinary N excretion (P <0.01). Endogenous urea-N production increased (P = 0.03) with increasing dietary CP level, as did urinary urea-N loss (P = 0.04). However, urea-N transfer to the gastro-intestinal tract (GIT) was similar across diets, with most of this N returned to the ornithine cycle. Microbial N supply was unaffected (P > 0.05) by dietary treatment. Experiment 2 examined the effects of feeding diets containing two levels of ruminally-degradable starch (RDS; 28.6 vs. 69.2% of total starch) and RDP (48.0% vs. 55.0% of CP) on urea-N recycling to the GIT, N balance, duodenal nutrient flow, and ruminal microbial protein production in beef heifers fed low CP (10%) diets. Ruminal NH3-N concentration was greater (P = 0.01) in heifers fed high RDP as compared with those fed low RDP, and it was also greater (P = 0.01) in heifers fed low RDS as compared with those fed high RDS. Microbial N flow to the duodenum increased as RDP level increased on the high RDS diet, but was not affected by RDP level on the low RDS diet (interaction; P = 0.04). Urea-N entry rate and urea-N transfer to the gastro-intestinal tract were similar (P > 0.05) across diets. The amount of recycled urea-N that was incorporated into microbial N increased as RDP level increased on the high RDS diet, but the opposite was observed on the low RDS diet (interaction; P = 0.008). Experiment 3 examined the effects of feeding diets containing two levels of CP (14.9 vs. 17.5%) and RDP (63.0 vs. 69.0% of CP) on urea-N recycling to the GIT, microbial protein production, N balance, omasal nutrient flow, and milk production in lactating dairy cows. Nitrogen intake (P < 0.01) and both urinary N (P < 0.01) and urea-N (P < 0.01) output were greater for cows fed the high compared with those fed the low CP diet. Ruminal NH3-N concentration tended to be greater in cows fed the high than those fed the low CP diet (P = 0.06), and was greater in cows fed high RDP as compared with those fed the low RDP diet (P < 0.01). However, N balance, milk yield, and microbial N supply were unaffected (P > 0.05) by dietary treatment. The proportion of endogenous urea-N that was recycled to the GIT (i.e., GER: UER) was greater (P = 0.02) in cows fed the low CP compared with those fed the high CP diet. In summary, the results of this thesis show that reducing dietary CP level in beef and dairy cattle reduces urinary N excretion whilst maintaining microbial N supply. In addition, judicious combinations of RDP and RDS when feeding low CP diets can potentially enhance the efficiency of microbial N production. These data show that through careful dietary manipulation, overall efficiency of N utilization can be improved leading to a reduction in N excretion into the environment.

The main material of electric arc furnace steel makers is scrap steel. The scrap steel was melted and reduced into molten steel and the substance of lower melting and boiling points are concentrated in fly ash. The ash collected by dust collector contains also, other than organic pollutants like polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, (PAHs), inorganic heavy metal pollutants, such as zinc, cobalt and lead. It is found that the content of zinc and cobalt in the ash are exceeding statutory standard of 5 mg/L and 1 mg/L. They are hazardous industrial waste.In the Steel Basic Industry Collected Dust Storage Extending Review Operation Key Point as amended on July 1, 2010 by Environmental Protection Administration, all the steel mills shall complete treatment of the stored collected dust before June 30, 2014 and no further storage will be permitted. Due to the fact that domestic capacity of treating collected dust is insufficient to meet the statutory requirements, the final treatment and disposition of collect duct has become a serious question to the steel mills.In this research, we press the dust collected in the process of arc furnace steel making into ingot and place into arc furnace for further melting and refining. Under temperature of 1600 ¢Jpart of the heavy metal is gasified and returned to waste gas and become collected dust and part of Silicon Dioxide and Magnesium Oxide are sintered into slag and turn the hazardous industrial waste into recycled industrial waste for further utilization, so that they may be disposed. After melting treatment, the collected dust, the regenerated dust has the zinc compound content increased to 13.45% and therefore increases the recycling value of collected dust. In this process, Iron Oxide is reduced 9.41% which can be turned into steel billet (product) and Silicon Dioxide and Magnesium Oxide are reduced 2.67% and were turned into slag.Results of this research indicated that after melting treatment of collected dust, it will be reduced 0.26% and is therefore good for waste reduction.

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