Photocatalytic Degradation of Toluene and BTEX Compounds in Gas Reactor Modified by TiO2/Ti Net Nanotubes

Abstract Exposure to volatile organic compounds (VOCs), such as toluene and BTEX gas, may cause severe impacts on the environment and long-term health problems for the workers. Industry must place this issue as a priority in supporting occupational health and efforts to minimize the environmental effects. However, many industries still have not paid more attention to degrading their industrial waste containing these compounds. Several studies on VOCs degradation in liquid and aerial media were developed in line with the rapid progress of nanomaterial technology. In this work, we have successfully synthesized TiO2/Ti Net nanotubes thin film resulted from anodization of Ti plate at 25 V vs Ag pseudo-reference electrode for eight hours and physically characterized by SEM/EDX and XRD. The activity test of photocatalysis was performed to determine the TiO2/Ti Net Nanotube's performance to degrade toluene steam and BTEX standard gas. Under the optimum experimental condition, the results showed that approximately 70% of toluene and 60% of BTEX standard gas were degraded in 120 min under the optimum experimental condition. The gas reactor generated approximately 400 ppm CO2 as a byproduct.

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Increased long-term health risks attributable to select volatile organic compounds in residential indoor air in southeast Louisiana

Scientific Reports ◽

10.1038/s41598-020-78756-7 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 10 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Jeffrey K. Wickliffe ◽

Thomas H. Stock ◽

Jessi L. Howard ◽

Ericka Frahm ◽

Bridget R. Simon-Friedt ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Carbon Tetrachloride ◽

Cancer Risk ◽

Organic Compounds ◽

Health Risks ◽

Indoor Air ◽

Risk Assessments ◽

Cancer Risks ◽

Volatile Organic ◽

Btex Compounds

AbstractVolatile organic compounds (VOCs) represent a broad class of chemicals, many of which can be found in indoor air including residential indoor air. VOCs derive from a variety of sources including cleaning products, cooking practices, fragrances and fresheners, hobbies and at-home work behaviors. This study examined residential indoor air in homes (n = 99) in southeast Louisiana using passive organic vapor monitors and gas chromatography/mass spectrometry to determine if select VOCs were present, at what concentrations, and if those posed any potential long-term health risks. Twenty-nine VOCs were targeted in cross-sectional analyses using a 48-h sampling period. Twelve VOCs were detected in most of the homes sampled including xylenes, pinenes, benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, hexane, pentane, chloroform, and carbon tetrachloride. Concentrations of alkanes and BTEX compounds were highly correlated (Spearman’s r > 0.63, p < 0.0001). Using health risk measures (i.e. reference concentrations [RfCs] and inhalation unit risks [IURs]) available from the USEPA non-cancer risk assessments and cancer risk assessments were developed for some of these VOCs. Alkanes and BTEX compounds likely come from the same indoor source(s). Using existing health standards published by the USEPA, no unacceptable non-cancer risks were evident except under extremely high concentrations. Lifetime cancer risks, on the other hand, may well be considered unacceptable for chloroform and benzene (upper IUR) and for the combination of chloroform, benzene, and carbon tetrachloride. These exceeded a 1 in 10,000 cancer risk threshold in 35–50% of our simulations. Further study of residential indoor air in low-income women’s homes in this area is needed. Including a larger number of VOCs may reveal yet more potential health risks.

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Strengthening of occupational health promotion by the German Prevention Health Care Act

Russian Journal of Occupational Health and Industrial Ecology ◽

10.31089/1026-9428-2019-3-188-190 ◽

2019 ◽

pp. 188-190

Author(s):

Diana Hart

Keyword(s):

Public Health ◽

Health Care ◽

Health Promotion ◽

Primary Prevention ◽

Occupational Health ◽

Life Expectancy ◽

Prevention And Control ◽

Occupational Health Promotion ◽

And Control

All countries are faced with the problem of the prevention and control of non-communicable diseases (NCD): implement prevention strategies eff ectively, keep up the momentum with long term benefi ts at the individual and the population level, at the same time tackling hea lth inequalities. Th e aff ordability of therapy and care including innovative therapies is going to be one of the key public health priorities in the years to come. Germany has taken in the prevention and control of NCDs. Germany’s health system has a long history of guaranteeing access to high-quality treatment through universal health care coverage. Th r ough their membership people are entitled to prevention and care services maintaining and restoring their health as well as long term follow-up. Like in many other countries general life expectancy has been increasing steadily in Germany. Currently, the average life expectancy is 83 and 79 years in women and men, respectively. Th e other side of the coin is that population aging is strongly associated with a growing burden of disease from NCDs. Already over 70 percent of all deaths in Germany are caused by four disease entities: cardiovascular disease, cancer, chronic respiratory disease and diabetes. Th ese diseases all share four common risk factors: smoking, alcohol abuse, lack of physical activity and overweight. At the same time, more and more people become long term survivors of disease due to improved therapy and care. Th e German Government and public health decision makers are aware of the need for action and have responded by initiating and implementing a wide spectrum of activities. One instrument by strengthening primary prevention is the Prevention Health Care Act. Its overarching aim is to prevent NCDs before they can manifest themselves by strengthening primary prevention and health promotion in diff erent sett ings. One of the main emphasis of the Prevention Health Care Act is the occupational health promotion at the workplace.

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Occasional and persistent frequent attenders and sickness absences in occupational health primary care: a longitudinal study in Finland

BMJ Open ◽

10.1136/bmjopen-2018-024980 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 9 (2) ◽

pp. e024980 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Tiia T M Reho ◽

Salla A Atkins ◽

Nina Talola ◽

Markku P T Sumanen ◽

Mervi Viljamaa ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Primary Care ◽

Longitudinal Study ◽

Occupational Health ◽

Sick Leave ◽

Diagnostic Codes ◽

Frequent Attenders ◽

Frequent Attendance ◽

Increased Risk ◽

Working Age

ObjectivesFrequent attenders (FAs) create a substantial portion of primary care workload but little is known about FAs’ sickness absences. The aim of the study is to investigate how occasional and persistent frequent attendance is associated with sickness absences among the working population in occupational health (OH) primary care.Setting and participantsThis is a longitudinal study using medical record data (2014–2016) from an OH care provider in Finland. In total, 59 676 patients were included and categorised into occasional and persistent FAs or non-FAs. Sick-leave episodes and their lengths were collected along with associated diagnostic codes. Logistic regression was used to analyse associations between FA status and sick leaves of different lengths (1–3, 4–14 and ≥15 days).ResultsBoth occasional and persistent FA had more and longer duration of sick leave than non-FA through the study years. Persistent FAs had consistently high absence rates. Occasional FAs had elevated absence rates even 2 years after their frequent attendance period. Persistent FAs (OR=11 95% CI 7.54 to 16.06 in 2016) and occasional FAs (OR=2.95 95% CI 2.50 to 3.49 in 2016) were associated with long (≥15 days) sickness absence when compared with non-FAs. Both groups of FAs had an increased risk of long-term sick leaves indicating a risk of disability pension.ConclusionBoth occasional and persistent FAs should be identified in primary care units caring for working-age patients. As frequent attendance is associated with long sickness absences and possibly disability pensions, rehabilitation should be directed at this group to prevent work disability.

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Titanium Nitride Thin Film Based Low-Redox-Interference Potentiometric pH Sensing Electrodes

Sensors ◽

10.3390/s21010042 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 21 (1) ◽

pp. 42

Author(s):

Shimrith Paul Shylendra ◽

Wade Lonsdale ◽

Magdalena Wajrak ◽

Mohammad Nur-E-Alam ◽

Kamal Alameh

Keyword(s):

Thin Film ◽

Titanium Nitride ◽

Orange Juice ◽

Ph Sensor ◽

Reference Electrode ◽

Cost Effective ◽

Ph Sensing ◽

Ph Sensors ◽

Potential Shift ◽

Double Junction

In this work, a solid-state potentiometric pH sensor is designed by incorporating a thin film of Radio Frequency Magnetron Sputtered (RFMS) Titanium Nitride (TiN) working electrode and a commercial Ag|AgCl|KCl double junction reference electrode. The sensor shows a linear pH slope of −59.1 mV/pH, R2 = 0.9997, a hysteresis as low as 1.2 mV, and drift below 3.9 mV/h. In addition, the redox interference performance of TiN electrodes is compared with that of Iridium Oxide (IrO2) counterparts. Experimental results show −32 mV potential shift (E0 value) in 1 mM ascorbic acid (reducing agent) for TiN electrodes, and this is significantly lower than the −114 mV potential shift of IrO2 electrodes with sub-Nernstian sensitivity. These results are most encouraging and pave the way towards the development of miniaturized, cost-effective, and robust pH sensors for difficult matrices, such as wine and fresh orange juice.

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Trends in PM2.5 Concentration in Nagoya, Japan, from 2003 to 2018 and Impacts of PM2.5 Countermeasures

Atmosphere ◽

10.3390/atmos12050590 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 12 (5) ◽

pp. 590

Author(s):

Makiko Yamagami ◽

Fumikazu Ikemori ◽

Hironori Nakashima ◽

Kunihiro Hisatsune ◽

Kayo Ueda ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Fine Particulate Matter ◽

Control Measures ◽

Source Control ◽

Atmospheric Concentration ◽

Construction Machinery ◽

Emission Regulations ◽

Volatile Organic ◽

Stationary Sources ◽

Pm2.5 Concentration

In Japan, various countermeasures have been undertaken to reduce the atmospheric concentration of fine particulate matter (PM2.5). We evaluated the extent to which these countermeasures were effective in reducing PM2.5 concentrations by analyzing the long-term concentration trends of the major components of PM2.5 and their emissions in Nagoya City. PM2.5 concentrations decreased by 53% over the 16-year period from fiscal years 2003 to 2018 in Nagoya City. Elemental carbon (EC) was the component of PM2.5 with the greatest decrease in concentration over the 16 years, decreasing by 4.3 μg/m3, followed by SO42− (3.0 μg/m3), organic carbon (OC) (2.0 μg/m3), NH4+ (1.6 μg/m3), and NO3− (1.3 μg/m3). The decrease in EC concentration was found to be caused largely by the effect of diesel emission control. OC concentrations decreased because of the effects of volatile organic compound (VOC) emission regulations for stationary sources and reductions in VOCs emitted by vehicles and construction machinery. NO3− concentrations decreased alongside decreased contributions from vehicles, construction machinery, and stationary sources, in descending order of the magnitude of decrease. Although these findings identify some source control measures that have been effective in reducing PM2.5, they also reveal the ineffectiveness of some recent countermeasures for various components, such as those targeting OC concentrations.

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Development of porous carbon/polydimethylsiloxane thin-film solid-phase microextraction membranes to facilitate on-site sampling of volatile organic compounds

Sustainable Chemistry and Pharmacy ◽

10.1016/j.scp.2021.100435 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 21 ◽

pp. 100435

Author(s):

Khaled Murtada ◽

Virginia Galpin ◽

Jonathan J. Grandy ◽

Varoon Singh ◽

Freddy Sanchez ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Thin Film ◽

Volatile Organic Compounds ◽

Organic Compounds ◽

Porous Carbon ◽

Solid Phase Microextraction ◽

Solid Phase ◽

Volatile Organic

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Achieving over 4% efficiency for SnS/CdS thin-film solar cells by improving the heterojunction interface quality

Journal of Materials Chemistry A ◽

10.1039/d0ta06937j ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 8 (39) ◽

pp. 20658-20665 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Jae Yu Cho ◽

SeongYeon Kim ◽

Raju Nandi ◽

Junsung Jang ◽

Hee-Sun Yun ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Thin Film ◽

Solar Cells ◽

Vapor Transport ◽

Thin Film Solar Cells ◽

Interface Quality ◽

Heterojunction Solar Cells ◽

Term Stability ◽

Long Term Stability ◽

Cds Thin Film

The highest efficiency of 4.225% for vapor-transport-deposited SnS absorber/CdS heterojunction solar cells with good long-term stability over two years is achieved.

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