International Journal of Environment and Pollution (4 papers in press)

Regular Issues

• A review on the use of air dispersion models for odour assessment  
  by Maurizio Onofrio, Roberta Spataro, Serena Botta 
  Abstract: Only recently, unpleasant odours have become an important environmental issue and a specific legislation is being developed and implemented. The assessment of odour impact involves several different aspects (large number of odorants, human sensitivity, different perception thresholds, etc.) and it is dealt with by the application of different techniques and methods. In this paper, a review about the reliability of air dispersion models applied to odour impact assessment determined by different types of source is presented, based on the analysis of 69 case studies published over the last 10 years. The Gaussian models were the most used techniques (67% of case studies) often accompanied with results validation with experimental data. The analysis of the case studies and related validation processes highlighted the reliability of dispersion models, if some critical issues, such as presence of particular climate conditions, duration of averaging times and position of important receptors, are known and correctly managed.
  Keywords: odour impact; air dispersion model; odour measurement; Gaussian model; impact assessment; CALPUFF; dynamic olfactometry; field inspection; electronic nose; validation of air dispersion model.
  
  
• Determinants of production-based and consumption-based CO2 emissions: a comparative analysis  
  by Camara Mamoudou 
  Abstract: The aim of this article is to compare production-based CO2 emissions (PBE-CO2) with consumption-based CO2 emissions (CBE-CO2), with particular focus on their determinants. The results reveal that several OECD countries have a negative trade balance in terms of CO2 emissions. The decoupling analysis over 1990-2012 also shows that the degree of decoupling between economic growth and CO2 emissions is less strong in terms of consumption-based emissions (CBE) than in terms of production-based emissions (PBE) for several OECD countries. Using panel data from 98 countries over the period 1990-2012, the results show that the elasticities (in absolute terms) of imports, exports and GDP per capita are larger on CBE-CO2 than on PBE-CO2 for non-OECD countries. However, the coefficients estimated of independent variables have generally the same signs for both types of CO2 emissions indicator.
  Keywords: production-based emissions; consumption-based emissions; CO2; decoupling; relative decoupling; absolute decoupling; carbon leakage; OECD; STIRPAT model; cross-sectional dependence; stationarity; CCE estimator.
  
  
• CURRENT UNDERSTANDING ON INDUSTRIAL ORGANIC WASTE MANAGEMENT BY EMPLOYING Eisenia fetida
  by Tridip Boruah 
  Abstract: Earthworms have the inherent capability of stabilizing different organic waste materials of industrial as well as domestic origin. This review paper depicts the potential of epigeic earthworm species Eisenia fetida in the vermistabilization of various industrial organic wastes such as silk industry waste, herbal pharmaceutical industry sludge, food industry sludge, milk processing industry sludge, tea factory coal ash, sugar mill sludge, Cotton industrial waste, paper mill waste, bio sludge of beverage industry. The analysis of results obtained clearly indicates the suitability of vermicomposting over conventional composting as an alternate technology for management, stabilization and nutrient recovery from industrial organic waste.
  Keywords: Eisenia fetida; Industrial organic waste; vermicomposting.
  
  
• Adsorption behaviour of estrogenic contaminant, estriol, using clinoptilolite modified with Saponin and Brij 35: equilibrium, kinetic, and thermodynamic studies plus fixed bed modelling  
  by Reyhaneh Saadi, Reza Fazaeli, Leila Vafajoo, Iraj Naser 
  Abstract: In this study, the adsorption affinity of a raw clinoptilolite (RC) modified with Saponin (RC-Saponin) and Brij 35 (RC-Brij) surfactants was investigated to adsorb estriol (E3) from wastewater. The effects of pH, amount of sorbent, contact time, and temperature were evaluated. The results for RC and RC-Saponin confirmed that the Langmuir isotherm had an excellent agreement with the experimental data. However, for RC-Brij, the Freundlich model had excellent correlation with the experimental data. The results indicated that RC-Saponin was a more effective adsorbent compared with the two other samples. Moreover, the lumped technique was used to solve the bed equations, to predict the trend of the breakthrough curve, and to obtain model parameters. The agreement between experimental data and kinetic models indicated that the intra-particle diffusion model had a better behaviour than other models. The thermodynamic parameters of Gibbs free energy, enthalpy, and entropy changes were obtained.
  Keywords: adsorption; estrogenic contaminant of estriol; Saponin and Brij 35 surfactants; raw clinoptilolite; batch and fixed bed processes.