Current Issue : April-June Volume : 2024 Issue Number : 2 Articles : 5 Articles
Air pollution in Iraq is a major environmental and public health problem. The main sources of air pollution in Iraq include fossil fuel combustion, industry, power generation, transportation, heating, brick and cement industry, oil industry, transportation, agricultural fires, dust storms and domestic and public generators. Air pollution in Iraq has a significant negative impact on human health. Air pollution is estimated to cause tens of thousands of deaths in Iraq each year. Air pollution is also linked to a range of other health problems, including respiratory infections, heart disease, cancer and stroke....
The effects of the random collection and overgrazing on Samawa desert were studied. Terfezia and Artemisia were selected to conduct the study in addition to report overgrazing activity near the collection area. Questionnaire form was prepared then 28 forms were filled from different locations and cities at Almuthanna governorate. The results showed that the collection prosses is completely random and there is no regulation to organize the processes. There are several industrial facilities and archeological sites that could be harmed due to the processes and wastes from the sites may be accumulated through the food chain. Results also showed there are different animals and plants in the area and food chains have been affected by the random collection and overgrazing. The collector’s behavior also impacts the surrounding environment, they are mostly uneducated, unemployed, and not well-trained people. They used primitive tools for collection, generate plastic wastes in the area. On the other hand, overgrazing has an essential impact on the food chain, natural plants, and animals in Samawa desert. In conclusion random collection and overgrazing have many impacts on the natural life in Samawa desert. The local government has to regulate the processes to save the desert environment from the anthropological activity. Some actions are required urgently such as: limited the collected amounts per person, no collection near the histological and industrial areas, and use developed tools for collection to save the soil in the area. The study is very important in the field because it is trying to grab the attention of local government to put strict regulations organizing the collection and grazing....
Enhanced geothermal system (EGS) technologies have been developed to improve geothermal energy production from hot dry rock (HDR). In this study, discrete fracture network models for geometric topological networks that consider different parameters (the fracture density and the fracture length index) were built on the basis of fractal geometry theory. The heat extraction processes of CO2 and water as the working fluid through different discrete fracture networks were simulated with the application of the thermal–hydraulic–mechanical (THM) coupled method. A series of sensitivity analyses were carried out to reveal the influences of fracture parameters on heat transfer processes. Based on the simulation results, heat extraction efficiencies and temperature distributions in the reservoir of CO2 and water as the working fluid were compared, which showed that CO2 as the working fluid can bring a faster thermal breakthrough. It was found that the fracture length index a = 2.5 and the fracture density I = 5.0 can provide the highest heat extraction rate compared with other cases. This study provides a detailed analysis of fracture parameters and working fluids, which will contribute to the optimized management of geothermal energy production....
The escalating demand for innovative solutions is driven by the challenges posed by water quality degradation and the pervasive impacts of climate change. As such, this study evaluated the performance of filter media to mitigate these challenges through multi-functional applications in urban constructed wetlands (UCWs). Column testing of organic filter media, including biochar (BC), woodchip (WC), anthracite (AT), and activated carbon (AC), as well as inorganic filter media, such as ceramic balls (CB), basalt (BS), and porous sand (PS), with synthetic stormwater runoff influent was conducted to assess their performance through water quality parameters and Scanning Electron Microscopy with Energy Dispersive X-Ray (SEM-EDX) analysis for carbon storage potential. Among the media tested, AC exhibited high pollutant removal efficiencies amounting to 84%, 54%, 56%, and 44% for total suspended solids (TSS), chemical oxygen demand (COD), total nitrogen (TN), and total phosphorus (TP), respectively. For inorganic media, PS had the highest TSS and TN removal, whereas BS exhibited the highest COD and TP removal. Overall performance rating revealed that AC and BS, despite their efficient pollutant removal, are associated with higher costs, resulting in a lower ranking compared to AT and PS. SEM-EDX analysis identified PS and AC as standout media for potential carbon storage, attributed to their extensive surface areas and pore structures providing abundant adsorption sites. The results from this study highlighted the potential applications of various filter media in UCW designs with the aim of achieving carbon neutrality and sustainable urban development....
At present, domestic waste incineration fly ash is classified as hazardous waste. The technical hurdle of fly ash detoxification and resource usage must be overcome in order to effectively utilize fly ash resources. In this study, we investigate the migration and transformation of heavy metal contaminants in the course of utilizing domestic waste incineration fly ash resources through the technology pathway of low-temperature pyrolysis, cyclic rinsing, and evaporation crystallization. Firstly, a comparative analysis was conducted on the fly ash (FA), pyrolysis ash (PA), and waterwashing ash (WA) resulting from domestic waste incineration, revealing 24 types of metals, 3 types of non-metals, and 8 types of oxides. We observed the variations in heavy metal concentrations as well as the acidity and alkalinity in three types of ash resulting from the regenerated salt (RS) and incineration processes. Moreover, we analyzed the changes in heavy metal levels and acidity and alkalinity of treated saline water (TSW) and industrial brine (IB), which originate from the fly ash treatment process. The study’s results have confirmed that the heavy metal content in RS was below the detection limit following resource treatment. In addition, the regenerated salt product is determined to be a CaO-SiO2-Al2O3-Fe2O3 system, which enables the utilization of fly ash as a valuable resource. Notably, there were significant changes observed in heavy metal content in TSW and IB. Continued attention needs to be paid to the potential risk of environmental contamination from heavy metals and dioxins in FA infiltration. This research will prove beneficial in assessing resource utilization potential of products subjected to environmentally sound incineration fly ash treatment....
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