Study design and rationale for a cluster randomized trial of a safe child feces management intervention in rural Odisha, India

Background Poor child feces management (CFM) is believed to be an important source of exposure to enteric pathogens that contribute to a large disease burden in low-income settings. While access to sanitation facilities is improving, national surveys indicate that even households with latrines often do not safely dispose of their child’s feces. Working with caregivers in rural Odisha, India, we co-developed an intervention aimed at improving safe disposal of child feces and encouraging child latrine use at an earlier age. We describe the rationale for the intervention and summarize the protocol for a cluster randomized trial (CRT) to evaluate its effectiveness at changing CFM practices. Methods The intervention consists of six behavior change strategies together with hardware provision: wash basin and bucket with lid to aid safe management of soiled nappies and a novel latrine training mat to aid safe disposal and latrine training. The intervention will be offered at the village level to interested caregivers of children < 5 years of age by a community-based organization. Following a baseline survey, 74 villages were randomly allocated to either intervention or control arm. The primary outcome is caregiver reported safe disposal of child feces after last defecation, either by the caregiver disposing of the child’s feces into the latrine or the child using the latrine, measured approximately four to six months following intervention delivery. Secondary outcomes include fecal contamination of household drinking water and the childs’ hands. A process evaluation will also be conducted to assess intervention fidelity and reach, and explore implementer and participant feedback. Discussion This study addresses a crucial knowledge gap in sanitation by developing a scalable intervention to improve safe management of child feces. The behavior change strategies were designed following the Risks, Attitudes, Norms, Abilities and Self-Regulation (RANAS) approach, which has shown to be effective for other environmental behavior change interventions in low-income settings. The latrine training mat hardware is a novel design developed cooperatively and manufactured locally. The evaluation follows a rigorous CRT study design assessing the impact of the intervention on CFM behavior change, as well as fecal contamination of two sources of potential exposure. Trial registration This trial is registered at ISRCTN: ISRCTN15831099.

Developments on Metal Sulfide Scale Management in Oil and Gas Production

Metal sulfide scaling issue in the oil and gas production continue to present significant flow assurance challenge. Recently, a novel polymeric chemistry that can effectively control FeS scale deposition in oil and gas production system was reported. However, how to manage finely dispersed FeS particulates at surface disposal facilities and whether this polymer is capable of mitigating ZnS and PbS deposition is largely unknown. Therefore, this study continues to seek an efficient treatment option for metal sulfide scale management. Static bottle tests and dynamic scale loop tests under anoxic conditions were conducted to understand the efficacy of the novel polymeric chemistry towards metal sulfide scaling control. To mimic various field conditions; individual metal sulfide (FeS, ZnS and PbS) as well as mixed scaling scenarios were simulated. Various coagulant and oxidant chemistries were tested to understand the impact of the upstream treatment on safe disposal of FeS nanoparticles at surface facilities. This novel polymeric chemistry was found to be not only effective towards FeS scaling control, but also towards dispersion of ZnS and PbS as well. The primary mechanism of metal sulfide scale deposition control is identified to be crystal growth inhibition and crystal surface modification. Laboratory test results indicated no negative impact of new chemistry on the performance of other chemicals (coagulant, oxidizer etc.). In fact, an enhanced efficiency of iron sulfide oxidation was observed possibly due to the large surface area of finely dispersed particles. A field throughput study results indicated superior performance compared to that of various incumbent chemistries. Based on the laboratory results, it is anticipated that this chemistry will provide a new treatment option for metal sulfide scaling/deposition control. Additionally, the new chemistry did not leave any negative footprint for safe disposal of metal sulfide particulate at surface. As opposed to the calcite/barite scale, nucleation inhibition of metal sulfide may not be desired as the dissolved sulfide may cause further corrosion/deposition downstream. Therefore, the value this paper brings to the management of metal sulfides is a systematic testing and evaluation approach which confirms dispersion rather than nucleation inhibition is effective control mechanism.

Advances in the Safe Disposal and Comprehensive Utilization of Spent Carbon Anode From Aluminum Electrolysis: Prospects for Extraction and Application of Carbon Resources From Hazardous Waste

Spent carbon anode (SCA) is a dangerous solid waste that is continuously discharged from the aluminum electrolysis industry and has a large number of valuable resources and a high risk of environmental pollution. Its safe disposal and resource utilization have become a resource and environmental problem that must be solved urgently. Current methods for SCA disposal include flotation, vacuum metallurgy, physical activation, roasting, bubbling fluidized bed combustion, alkali fusion, alkali leaching, and chemical leaching combined with high temperature graphitization. In this paper, the material composition, resource properties, and environmental risks of SCA are discussed. Working principle, treatment process, advantages and disadvantages of the above methods are also briefly described and compared. Results showed that flotation is the safest disposal and comprehensive utilization technology that is suitable for characteristics of SCA raw materials and has the most large-scale application potential. In addition, characteristics of SCA recovery products are correlated to the recycling of aluminum reduction cells. This technology can alleviate the shortage of high-quality petroleum coke resources in China’s carbon material industry and the high cost of raw materials in aluminum electrolysis industry.

A REVIEW ON STUDIES AND RESEARCH ON USE OF PLASTIC, ITS HAZARDS AND SAFE DISPOSAL

The community has been described together of the foremost fruitful areas for improving the health of the people. It is an incontrovertible fact that social, physical and cultural aspects of the community have a serious influence on an individuals health status. One among the most risky assembling is the plastic which are used on a day to day throughout the planet. The plastic may be a common word thats used for several materials that are synthetic and semi- synthetic in nature. Use of plastic bag and bottle are common. The disposal of plastic waste is major problem due to non biodegradable nature of plastic. Its used for road construction, packaging, protecting, serving, and even removing all types of commodity. The current review summarized the research on use of plastic, its hazards and safe disposal.

Study on Influence of Use of Waste Cooking and Engine Oil on the Properties of Bituminous Concrete

Bitumen is defined as a gelatinous viscid mixture of hydrocarbons attained naturally or as a residue from petroleum refinement which is used for pavement materialization and roofing. Bitumen is employed as a binder for flexible pavements throughout the globe. Though bitumen is non-hazardous under normal conditions but when heated it becomes toxic and has consequences of environmental degradation. Also, bitumen being a product of non-renewable source of energy i.e. petroleum will led to depletion of petroleum reserves. It is a key challenge in highway industry to scale back the dependence on fossil fuels & to recycle the highway waste. The asphalt industry is undoubtedly a sector that contains a sustainable environmental impact, one amongst the main component being binder, bitumen, which is produced from petroleum. Bitumen generation results in enormous amounts of carbon dioxide emission which causes hazardous environmental impact. This research work is about the employment of waste oils as the alternative binders. The waste oils employed are waste cooking and waste engine oil. These are studied and analyzed as a step towards sustainable environment. This project work will provide an alternative or modified binder as well as will serve with the better way for safe disposal of waste oils generated. Thus, this project is beneficial concerning both the environmental aspects of alternative binder and safe disposal of waste oils. Keywords: Pavements, Bitumen, Engine Oil, Cooking Oil, Addition Percentage, Highway Industry.