Browsing by Author "Bortone, Imma"
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Item Open Access Associated health risks from heavy metal-laden effluent into point drainage channels in Faisalabad, Pakistan(Pakistan Agricultural Research Council, 2021-06-20) Raza, Taqi; Qureshi, Kashif Nazir; Imran, Shakeel; Eash, Neal Samuel; Bortone, ImmaIndustrial effluent discharge has increased due to rapid urbanization and industrialization. Irrational use of this water for irrigation has caused environmental and health issues. The objective of the current study is to evaluate the treated effluents of textile, ghee and chemical industries for major heavy metals (Cd, Cr, Ni, Pb and Fe) and other basic analysis (pH, EC, TSS and TDS). Effluent samples were collected from the discharge of industries entering into main wastewater collecting channel located in Faisalabad city. Heavy metals contents were determined via atomic absorption spectrophotometry. Results showed that the highest pH (11.06) was recorded in textile effluent while EC (7.89mS/cm), TSS (1185.55mg/L) and TDS (6317.33mg/L) were found highest in chemical industrial effluents. Heavy metals contents were determined through atomic absorption spectrophotometer. The mean comparison of heavy metal concentration (mg/L) showed the concentration of Cd, Cr and Ni were within the safe limits; however, Fe and Pb were higher than the safe limits in all industrial effluents. The highest/unsafe concentration of metal Fe was recorded 4.093, 2.979 and 2.959 mg/L in the effluents of chemical, textile and ghee mill respectively. While the highest/unsafe concentration of metal Pb was recorded 0.643, 0.578 and 0.286 mg/L in the effluents of textile, chemical and ghee mill respectively. The permissible limits of heavy metals Fe and Pb is 0.5 and 2 mg/L respectively. We conclude that before discharge into a receiving stream, the effluents must be treated more time with a treatment method that removes Pb and Fe within standard limits else the discharge will pose pollution and health risks to human beings.Item Open Access Characterization of two-phase flow in a typical metrological test flow loop.(Cranfield University, 2022-09) Egbue, Jude; Lao, Liyun; Bortone, ImmaThe understanding of the flow behaviour such as the flow regimes is important in multiphase flow metering for verification of the test meters especially during the reproducibility tests, as the meter could be transferred among different test flow loops or moved from one location to another within a flow loop. As the pipe geometry and configurations may vary for different testing laboratories and on the field, proper understanding of effect of geometrical variances on multiphase flow behaviour is deemed important for proper assessment of multiphase flow meter (MPFM) performance and as well developing testing protocols for commercial flow meters. To improve the performance assessment of MPFM, adequate understanding of the influence of pipe configurations on multiphase flow behaviour in a typical multiphase flow loop is important in order to design a flow loop for the purpose of calibration and validation of MPFM. To obtain this knowledge, a systematic study of flow characteristics transitioning from the horizontal to the vertical section in a typical MPFM testing installation with varying upstream and downstream configuration is needed to provide guidance on proper designing of MPFM calibration flow loop. To this aim, an experimental study was carried out in a typical MPFM flow loop which consists of 19.2 m long horizontal section followed by a 2.6 m long vertical section. All the sections are at industrial scale, being made of inner diameter (ID) of 0.077 m clear PVC pipe that allows for gas-liquid two-phase flow behaviour to be observed and determined. The alteration of upstream and downstream geometries of the flow loop are also carried out to investigate the effect of geometrical variances on the flow. Air and water are the fluids used for this study. The result of the study showed that the pipe configuration has significant effect on smooth stratified flow. The stratified flow regime observed in conventional straight pipe in horizontal section for low superficial velocities was observed to be absent in the present work. Instead, unstable wavy-slug (UWS) flow regime was observed. None of typical horizontal flow regime maps considered in this work were able to correctly predict UWS flow regime. The void fraction in the horizontal section was observed to be influenced by the pipe configuration due to liquid accumulation in the horizontal section. This could contribute to measurement uncertainties of phase fractions in the horizontal section. Analyses of the experimental results showed that no significant change in flow regimes was observed in the horizontal section with different development lengths of 100D and 200D (D is the pipe diameter) from the gas injection points. This suggests that a length of 100D may be sufficient development length for air-water two-phase flow in the horizontal section for such flow loop. Furthermore, more liquid accumulation is observed in 200D as compared with 100D case, which leads to lower void fraction in 200D development length. Downstream effect of the pipe configuration due to backward flow of the liquid phase was noticed to have significant effect on the flow structure in the horizontal section as observed in the probability density function (PDF) signature of the flows. The experimental investigation of effect of blind tee length on pressure fluctuation has shown that the 90-degree bend (equivalent to a blind length of 0D) has the highest-pressure fluctuation while the blind tee with 0.154 m clearance (2D length) has the lowest pressure fluctuation. The magnitude of pressure fluctuation is observed to be higher for intermittent flows than that of separated flows. The influence of blind tee length on pressure fluctuation tends to decrease with distance away from the blind tee in straight pipes. A set of guidelines for the MPFM test flow loop were proposed based on the outcome of the current studies.Item Open Access Data supporting: 'Evaluating Different Soil Amendments as Bioremediation Strategy for Wetland Soil Contaminated by Crude Oil'(Cranfield University, 2023-02-01 17:33) Jumbo, Raphael; Coulon, Frederic; Cowley, Tamazon; ndubuisi Azuazu, Ikeabiama; Atai, Emmanuel; Bortone, Imma; Jiang, YingThis study evaluated the efficacy of using Tween 80 surfactant (TW80) and food-waste anaerobic digestate fibre (FWAD) as soil amendments for the remediation of wetlands contaminated by crude oil. A 112-day mesocosms experiment was carried out to simulate hydrocarbon degradation under typical acidified wetland conditions. Soil was spiked with 50,000 mg kgˆ’1 crude oil and TW80 and FWAD were added to mesocosms at 10%, 20% and 30% w/w. The soil basal respiration, microbial community dynamics, environmental stress, alkanes, and PAHs degradation were monitored throughout the mesocosm experiment. Amending the mesocosms with FWAD and TW80 enabled the recovery of the soil microbial activities. This was evidenced by soil basal respiration which was the highest in the 30% FWAD and 30% TW80 mesocosms and translated into increased degradation rate of 32% and 23% for alkanes, and 33% and 26% for PAHs compared to natural attenuation, respectively. Efficient total hydrocarbon degradation was achieved in soil mesocosms with 30% FWAD and 30% TW80 at 90% and 86.8%, respectively after 49 days. Maize seed germination results showed significant improvement from 29% to over 90% following the FWAD and TW80 treatment.Item Open Access Enhancing bioremediation efficiency of acidic wetlands contaminated with crude oil.(Cranfield University, 2023-03) Jumbo, Raphael Butler; Jiang, Ying; Bortone, Imma; Coulon, FredericCrude oil exploration and exploitation has significantly impacted the Niger Delta, Nigeria wetlands and its ecosystems. Studies suggest that acidification is ongoing with several acid forming and acid tolerant microbes identified in the Niger Delta wetlands. The efficient remediation of the crude oil contaminants in the acidified wetlands is the only alternative left to the Niger Delta for effective ecological restoration of the environment. In this research, different combinations of bioremediation strategies were investigated to enhance the remediation of simulated crude oil contaminated acidic wetlands similar to the Nigeria Niger Delta wetlands contamination conditions. A series of mesocosm experiments subjected to wetland condition and a combination of treatments were evaluated as follows: for biostimulation experiment, Food waste anaerobic digestate (FWAD), and Tween 80 surfactant were individually added to the mesocosms at 10%, 20% and 30% w/w respectively with soil in the mesocosm experiments. For bioaugmentation experiments, mesocosms were enriched with Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Bacillus subtilis, or microbes indigenous to the crude oil spiked soil. Sequel to the results of these experiments, an optimised combination of FWAD (30% w/w) plus Tween 80 (30% w/w), Tween 80 (30% w/w) plus indigenous microbes, and digestate (30% w/w) plus Tween 80 (30% w/w) plus indigenous microbes were investigated. For each set of the experiments, pristine soil, acidified soil, and crude oil spiked acidified soil were maintained as controls. Total petroleum hydrocarbon (TPH) contents, soil basal respiration, and soil microbial communities’ dynamics were measured over 112 days of the experiments. For the biostimulation experiment, the FWAD and Tween 80 each at 30% (w/w) resulted in the highest petroleum hydrocarbons degradation (> 87% removal in 49 days). Augmentation with indigenous microbes enhanced the extent of degradation of the petroleum hydrocarbons (up to 80% in 49 days). For the optimised combined strategies, digestate (30% w/w) plus Tween 80 (30% w/w) plus indigenous microbes resulted in degradation of the hydrocarbons by > 98%. The correlation between basal respiration, microbial community and hydrocarbons showed that the more the biogenic CO₂ produced by the relevant microbial community, the faster the rate of the hydrocarbons degradation. Gram positive bacteria were the dominant microbial group in the FWAD, Tween 80 surfactant, indigenous microbes, and combined digestate (30% w/w) plus Tween 80 (30% w/w) plus indigenous microbe mesocosms. This research has demonstrated that acidified wetlands contaminated by petroleum hydrocarbons can be effectively remediated using low carbon biomaterials and indigenous microbial consortia. This conclusion was further confirmed by the more than 90% maize germination and undetectable bioavailable hydrocarbons recorded at the end of the experiment in these mesocosms. Potential exists for further studies in low carbon remediation of weathered hydrocarbons contaminants in various types of wetlands and sediments using FWAD, Tween 80 surfactant, and indigenous microbes.Item Open Access Evaluating different soil amendments as bioremediation strategy for wetland soil contaminated by crude oil(MDPI, 2022-12-10) Jumbo, Raphael; Coulon, Frederic; Cowley, Tamazon; Azuazu, Ikeabiama; Atai, Emmanuel; Bortone, Imma; Jiang, YingThis study evaluated the efficacy of using Tween 80 surfactant (TW80) and food-waste anaerobic digestate fibre (FWAD) as soil amendments for the remediation of wetlands contaminated by crude oil. A 112-day mesocosms experiment was carried out to simulate hydrocarbon degradation under typical acidified wetland conditions. Soil was spiked with 50,000 mg kg−1 crude oil and TW80 and FWAD were added to mesocosms at 10%, 20% and 30% w/w. The soil basal respiration, microbial community dynamics, environmental stress, alkanes, and PAHs degradation were monitored throughout the mesocosm experiment. Amending the mesocosms with FWAD and TW80 enabled the recovery of the soil microbial activities. This was evidenced by soil basal respiration which was the highest in the 30% FWAD and 30% TW80 mesocosms and translated into increased degradation rate of 32% and 23% for alkanes, and 33% and 26% for PAHs compared to natural attenuation, respectively. Efficient total hydrocarbon degradation was achieved in soil mesocosms with 30% FWAD and 30% TW80 at 90% and 86.8%, respectively after 49 days. Maize seed germination results showed significant improvement from 29% to over 90% following the FWAD and TW80 treatment.Item Open Access Experimental and simulation study of the restoration of a thallium (I)-contaminated aquifer by Permeable Adsorptive Barriers (PABs)(Elsevier, 2018-02-20) Santonastaso, G. F.; Erto, A.; Bortone, Imma; Chianese, S.; Di Nardo, A.; Musmarra, D.Permeable Adsorptive Barriers (PABs), filled with a commercial activated carbon, are tested as a technique for the remediation of a thallium (I)-contaminated aquifer located in the south of Italy. Thallium adsorption capacity of the activated carbon is experimentally determined through dedicated laboratory tests, allowing to obtain the main modelling parameters to describe the adsorption phenomena within the barrier. A 2D numerical model, solved by using a finite element approach via COMSOL Multi-physics®, is used to simulate the contaminant transport within the aquifer and for the PAB design. Investigations are carried out on an innovative barrier configuration, called Discontinuous Permeable Adsorptive Barrier (PAB-D). In addition, an optimization procedure is followed to determine the optimum PAB-D parameters, and to evaluate the total costs of the intervention. A PAB-D made by an array of wells having a diameter of 1.5 m and spaced at a distance of 4 m from each other, is shown to be the most cost-effective of those tested, and ensures the aquifer restoration within 80 years. The simulation outcomes demonstrate that the designed PAB-D is an effective tool for the remediation of the aquifer under analysis, since the contaminant concentration downstream of the barrier is below the thallium regulatory limit for groundwater, also accounting for possible desorption phenomena. Finally, the best PAB-D configuration is compared with a continuous barrier (PAB-C), resulting in a 32% saving of adsorbing material volume, and 36% of the overall costs for the PAB-D.Item Open Access Experimental investigations and numerical modelling of in-situ reactive caps for PAH contaminated marine sediments(Elsevier, 2019-11-21) Bortone, Imma; Labianca, Claudia; Todaro, Francesco; De Gisi, S.; Coulon, Frederic; Notarnicola, M.The present study compared numerical modelling and experimental investigations to evaluate the effectiveness of in-situ reactive capping for marine sediments contaminated by polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). As a case study, sediment samples from Mar Piccolo (Italy) were analyzed and experiments were undertaken using batch columns. Two types of capping amendments were tested: AquaGate® + 5 % of powdered activated carbon (AG PAC) and Organoclay Reactive Core Mat (OC RCM). The column tests were carried out for 20 days, obtaining a short-term PAH distribution for three cases analysed, which compared the application of the two caps with no intervention. In parallel, in order to evaluate the intervention long term efficacy, an ad-hoc multilayered model predicting PAH concentrations into the sediments and the overlying water column was developed and validated with the experimental results. Both capping systems considerably reduced PAH concentrations in the overlying water, with the highest performance seen in AG PAC for benzo[a]pyrene (99 %) and anthracene (72 %); results also confirmed in the model predictions. In addition, the numerical simulations indicated a good efficiency of both caps over time, obtaining PAH values below the threshold limit in the long term. Although further experiments need to be developed accounting for multiple contamination competitiveness.Item Open Access Gaps in regulation and policies on the application of green technologies at household level in the United Kingdom(MDPI, 2022-03-29) Bortone, Imma; Sakar, Hacer; Soares, Anaited Kingdom (UK) government established a Ten-Point Plan and over GBP 5 billion to support Green-Tech to lay the foundations for a green industrial revolution and reduce emissions by 180 million tons of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e) by 2032. Households and buildings contribute around 40% of the UK’s total GHG emissions, which implies that key actions are needed in all areas around the building sector (Point 7). This study provides an overview and analysis of the existing regulation and standards in the UK building/household sector, to understand the current state-of-the-art and identify gaps preventing Green-Tech wider implementation and use. Discrepancies in regulation and standards were identified. Given that households bring together and adhere to numerous standards and regulations, the analysis highlighted that it is critical to formulate relevant actions starting from the individuals with engagement and information. Complete and clear guidelines addressing environmental awareness, the performance and economical convenience of Green-Tech implementation and related regulations, are required to come to a consensus on the best way to move forward to achieve sustainability and NET-ZERO targets.Item Open Access An innovative in-situ DRAINage system for advanced groundwater reactive TREATment (in-DRAIN-TREAT)(Elsevier, 2020-12-24) Bortone, Imma; Santonastaso, G.; Erto, A.; Chianese, S.; Di Nardo, A.; Musmarra, D.The removal of groundwater contamination is a complex process due to the hydro-geochemical characteristics of the specific site, related maintenance and the possible presence of several types of pollutants, both organic and inorganic. In recent decades, there has been an increasing drive towards more sustainable treatment for contaminated groundwater as opposed to “intensive” treatments, i.e. with high requirements for onsite infrastructure, energy and resource use. In this study, a new remediation technology is proposed, combining the use of advanced drainage systems with adsorption processes, termed “In-situ reactive DRAINage system for groundwater TREATment” (In-DRAIN-TREAT). By taking advantage of the groundwater natural gradient, In-DRAIN-TREAT collects the contaminated groundwater via a drainage system and treats the polluted water directly into an active cell located downstream, avoiding external energy inputs. Preliminary results indicate the applicability and high efficiency of In-DRAIN-TREAT when compared with a permeable reactive barrier (PRB). In-DRAIN-TREAT is applied to remediate a theoretical aquifer with low permeability, contaminated by a 13 m wide hexavalent chromium (CrVI) plume. This is achieved in less than a year, via a drain DN500, 32 m long, a 30 m3 treatment cell filled with activated carbon and no energy consumption. A comparison with permeable barriers also shows a preliminary 63% volume reduction, with a related 10% decrease of remediation costs.Item Open Access Predicting the effects of capping contaminated sediments via numerical simulations(Taylor and Francis, 2018-11-30) Bortone, Imma; Di Natale, M.; Musmarra, D.Contaminated sediments are one of the key risks to human health and the environment, due to high concentrations of many types of substances contained in them and their direct contact with the aquatic fauna. This contributes to fish consumption advisories and limits the uses of many water bodies. In this study, an in situ capping (ISC) is considered as a potential remedy to minimise the exposure of aquatic ecosystems to sediment contaminants and a valid alternative to ex situ remediation options, by reducing contaminant fluxes to the upper water. Numerical design simulations, taking into account a biosorptive sediment cap and comparing different adsorptive characteristics of sediments, are proposed. As a case study, polychlorinated biphenyls contaminated sediments of Lake Hartwell, an artificial lake located in South Carolina, USA, were considered. A numerical predictive model of concentrations in a multilayered bed sediment and overlying water was developed in order to evaluate the long-term effectiveness of ISC of different thicknesses. Results showed that, for the case study, a minimum 20 cm cap allows to reduce the contaminant flux to the overlying water through reaction of the contaminants with the capping matrix, by highlighting how sediment biosorptive characteristics can influence the cap design.Item Open Access Pump-and-treat configurations with vertical and horizontal wells to remediate an aquifer contaminated by hexavalent chromium(Elsevier, 2020-09-28) Bortone, Imma; Erto, Alessandro; Di Nardo, Armando; Santonastaso, Giovanni F.; Chianese, Simeone; Musmarra, DinoPump-and-treat technology is among the most used technologies for groundwater remediation. While conventional, vertical wells (VRWs) are well-known and used from long time, horizontal wells (HRWs) have been explored for remediation technologies only in last few decades. HRWs have shown to outperform vertical wells in terms of versatility, productivity and clean-up times under certain conditions. In this paper, the efficacy of an innovative pump-and-treat (P&T) configuration for groundwater remediation obtained by adopting either VRWs or HRWs technology is comparatively tested. A 3D transient finite element model of an unconfined aquifer containing a hexavalent chromium (Cr(VI)) contamination plume is considered to compare a single horizontal well configuration vs a range of spatially-optimised arrays containing vertical wells. A sensitivity analysis aimed at finding the best configuration to minimise the remediation time and the related cost is carried out by comparing different well diameters, D, pumping rates, Q, and position of wells. A comparative cost analysis demonstrates that, for the examined case-study, a single HRW achieves the clean-up goals in the same time span as for a greater number of vertical wells, but at higher price due to the excavation costs.Item Open Access A review of the in-situ capping amendments and modeling approaches for the remediation of contaminated marine sediments(Elsevier, 2021-10-25) Labianca, Claudia; De Gisi, Sabino; Todaro, Francesco; Notarnicola, Michele; Bortone, ImmaContaminated sediments can pose long-term risks to human beings and ecosystems as they accumulate inorganic and organic contaminants becoming a sink and source of pollution. Compared to ex-situ technologies (i.e., dredging activities and off site treatments), in-situ capping (ISC) intends to minimize contaminated sediment mobilization and impact into the water column whilst treating contamination. Literature shows that numerous types of ISC amendments in presence of both organic and inorganic pollutants are investigated, although a few are contributions whose experiments have been designed and conducted with a view to future engineering. Against this background of shortcomings, this review paper intends to investigate ISC reliability, applicability and its long-term effectiveness, by also comparing reactive and physical ISCs. Additionally, an examination of the main numerical simulations applied to ISC technology was carried out. We found that activated carbon and organoclay resulted the most studied amendments for organically contaminated sediment, whereas biochar, clay minerals, and industrial-by products were more employed in presence of sediment contaminated by metal(loids). There is no better ISC system in absolute terms, since technological performance depends on many factors and only a few experimental investigations included a long-term modeling phase to predict ISC long-term efficiency. Most of numerical models included simplified transport equations based on diffusion and adsorption, and the goodness of fitting between experimental and modeled data was not always computed. The review finally discusses new research directions such as the need for long-term applications on field-scale and cap effectiveness in presence of site-specific tidal forces and currents.