Contribution of a Geographic Information System to Assess the Vulnerability to Groundwater Pollution of the Free Water Table from the Oued Souf Region (South-East Algeria)

The Oued Souf free aquifer located in the South East of Algeria represents the main water resource used mostly for urban and agricultural activities. The intensive use of chemical fertilizers has led to serious environmental problems such as contamination of the free aquifer in the region. Thus, aquifer vulnerability has been assessed using several different methods (DRASTIC, GOD, and the Susceptibility Index ‘SI’) based on a geographic information system (GIS). For each method, two vulnerability maps have been developed in the years 2002 and 2012. These maps show that the study area is more exposed to urban, and especially agricultural, pollution. Two classes of vulnerability (moderate and high) have been identified by both DRASTIC and GOD methods. A combined analysis reveals that the moderate class showing 48% (for the GOD method), and the high class showing 57% (for the DRASTIC method) are the most dominant. However, the Susceptibility Index method (SI) revealed that the vulnerability varies from moderate to very high-level classes. In 2012, about of 53% of the study area was dominated by moderate vulnerability classes. The high vulnerability class also includes a considerable part of the land (41%) around urban or strongly agricultural areas, while only 6% is under very high vulnerability groundwater contamination. In addition, a marked decrease in the vulnerability level was noticed in 2012 compared to 2002. This decrease is mainly due to the lowering of the water table after the installation of a vertical drainage network to evacuate the surplus water to the depression and Chotts areas in the North of the region. These results provide a guide for decision-makers involved in the protection of groundwater pollution in such a vulnerable area.

Pressure Settlement Behaviour and Bearing Capacity of Asymmetric Embedded Plus Shaped Footing on Layered Sand

The aim of the present numerical study was to analyse the pressure settlement behaviour and bearing capacity of asymmetric plus shaped footing resting on loose sand overlying dense sand at varying embedment depth. The numerical investigation was carried out using ABAQUS software. The effect of depth of embedment, friction angle of upper loose and lower dense sand layer and thickness of upper loose sand on the bearing capacity of the asymmetric plus shaped footing was studied in this investigation. Further, the comparison of the results of the bearing capacity was made between the asymmetric and symmetric plus shaped footing. The results reveal that with increase in depth of embedment, the dimensionless bearing capacity of the footings increased. The highest increase in the dimensionless bearing capacity was observed at embedment ratio of 1.5. The increase in the bearing capacity was 12.62 and 11.40 times with respect to the surface footings F1 and F2 corresponding to a thickness ratio of 1.5. The lowest increase in the dimensionless bearing capacity was observed at embedment ratio of 0.1 and the corresponding increase in the bearing capacity was 1.05 and 1.02 times with respect to the surface footing for footings F1 and F2 at a thickness ratio of 1.5.

The Influence of the Poles’ Lifestyle on the Quantity and Quality of Municipal Wastewater

The article presents lifestyle as an important factor determining the quantity and quality of municipal wastewater. The characteristic of wastewater in Poland has changed significantly in recent years. The qualitative characteristics of municipal wastewater indicate an increase of organic compounds and in the scope of micro-contaminants identified in them, e.g. nanoparticles, microplastics, pharmaceutical and personal care products or heavy metals. Therefore, the knowledge of parameters such as: BOD5, COD, total N, total P and suspension solids is no longer sufficient for the design and operation of wastewater treatment systems. Comprehensive research in this area is necessary to select those indicators that better describe the characteristics of wastewater.

Numerical Modeling of the Degradation of the Normal Stress Under Large Number of Shearcycles

The evaluation of friction is an important element in the verification of stability and the determination of the bearing capacity of piles. In the case of cyclic stress, the soil-pile interface has a relaxation which corresponds to a fall in the horizontal stress which represents the normal stress at the lateral surface of the pile. This paper presents an explicit formulation to express the degradation of the normal stress after a large number of shear cycles as a function of cyclic parameters. In this study we are interested in the exploitation of the cyclic shear tests carried out by Pra-ai [1] with imposed normal rigidity (CNS) in order to demonstrate the phenomenon of falling of the normal stress. The approach presented in this paper consists in proposing a simple expression for estimating the degradation of normal stress as a function of cyclic shear parameters after a large number of cycles. The validation of this approach is verified by the application of this formulation to a real case where the comparison of the simulations made by this approach with those recorded on site shows the good adaptation of this approach to this type of problems.

Effectiveness of Pollutant Removal At the Wastwewater Treatment Plant in Goleniów

The article assesses the efficiency of pollutant removal at the sewage treatment plant in Goleniów after modernization of the technological system. The extension and modernization of the existing installation resulted from the need to adapt the treatment plant to accept larger loads of pollutants, improve the parameters of treated sewage discharged to the receiver, and the poor technical condition of the equipment. Before the modernization of the treatment plant, an increase in the loads of COD, BOD5, and periodic total suspended solids in raw sewage was observed as well as a reduction in the efficiency of removing pollutants from the sewage. The efficiency of removing pollutants after modernization was in the range of BOD5 - 94.4 ÷ 99.8%, COD - 89.3 ÷ 98.9%, total suspended solids TSS - 95.3 ÷ 99.7%, total nitrogen - 64.1 ÷ 95.4%, and total phosphorus - 75.4 ÷ 99.4%.

Proposal for Modernisation of Large Block System Buildings (Lbs) - Facades – Lublin University of Technology

The over 40-years-old housing stock from the industrialized mass housing era is today functionally deficient and does not meet the current needs of residents. In particular, there are numerous architectural barriers, the systems are worn and obsolete, and the number of housing types is very limited. Examples of the modernization of multi-story residential buildings (the article presents those from Russia and Ukraine) confirm that this problem is universal, and a significant improvement of the building’s. utility value can be achieved through a relatively small modification of the building fabric: precast concrete structures of the buildings prove to be flexible enough to accommodate deep changes. The authors present a concept of modernization of a building erected in a “large block” system, typical for the Polish housing of the 1970s in many cities. The case study concerns a particular building located in Lublin in one of the large housing estates – the concept of its modernization is compatible with the local spatial development plan, the proposed solutions are architecturally coherent and technically feasible.

Comparison of Leak Detection Methods Used for Testing Large Area Membrane Roofs for Durability Assessment Purposes

This article presents different types of commercially available roof waterproofing membrane systems used on roofs with large surface area. It deals with the causes of deterioration of such membranes due to environmental factors and describes the tests used to detect leaks and determination of the severity of deterioration of polymeric membranes taking into account the properties declared by their manufactures. The last part of the article is a case study comparing a brand new membrane with a membrane after 27 years in service.

Recent Studies on the Properties of Pervious Concrete; A Sustainable Solution for Pavements and Water Treatment

Pervious concrete a sustainable solution with limited fines or no fines and interconnected voids, has many environmental benefits, such as reducing the stormwater run-off, improving the groundwater table, reducing water pollution, and mitigating urban heat island. Many research works have been done in Pervious Concrete (PC) by varying different parameters such as, types of aggregate, aggregate gradation, water-to-cement (w/c) ratio, cement-to-aggregate ratio, geopolymer binder, ultra-high strength Matrix and compaction techniques. All these parameters have direct influences on the strength, porosity, permeability, hydraulic efficiency and durability characteristics of PC. The main aim of this paper is to review the recent work carried out in pervious concrete under six different categories (i) Effect of binders, coarse aggregate, admixtures and fibers used in PC (ii) Mechanical and durability properties (iii) pore structure characteristics (iv) Study on Clogging Effect (v) Role of PC in the water purification process and (vi) Numerical model in PC.

A Palimpsest of Place. Renovation of the Old Starosty Complex and Medieval Cellars in Olkusz

The structure and methods of separating the space in consciously formed objects are a reflection of philosophical theories and historical processes, a specific emanation of the ocentricism, anthropocentrism and anti-centrism. Constructing the structure of an architectural object, i.e., separating space for it and within it, is determined by types of activities, methods, and purpose.

Physicochemical Characterization of the Quality of Groundwater: Case Study of the Tebessa Plain (North-East Algeria)

In order to characterize the physicochemical quality of groundwater, and to examine the behavior of factors influencing water chemism in the Tebessa Plain, which is part of a semi-arid region located in the northeast of Algeria, physicochemical analyses were carried out on 32 water samples from the Mio-Plio quaternary water table. In the east of the study region, in the Djebissa area, most of the Triassic formations form a depression made up of masses of gypsiferous clay, where some outcrops of Triassic dolomites appear together with several blocks of carbonate rocks, torn off during the Aptian- Albian age. In the center and to the west of the plain, carbonate formations are represented by a significant layer of limestone marl and marl from the Cretaceous to Tertiary periods. The results obtained showed that the quality of the water is influenced by the heterogeneity of the geological formations. The concentrations of chlorides, sulphates, and sodium are high in the eastern part of the study area, which can be explained by the impact of gypsum formations, confirmed by the Sr2+/Ca2+ ratio being greater than 3 ‰ for the majority of samples. In the wells of the Tebessa and Ain Chabro areas, the concentrations of calcium, magnesium, and bicarbonates increase due to the predominance of carbonate formations of borders. The use of the statistical tool confirmed the evaporitic origin of the anions, especially in the east of the study region.