Potential risk of soil irrigation with treated wastewater over 40 years:a field experiment under semi-arid conditions in northeastern Tunisia

In Tunisia,water scarcity is only adding pressure on water demand in agriculture.In the context of sustainable development goals,Tunisia has been reusing treated wastewater(TWW)as a renewable and inexpensive source for soil fertigation and groundwater(GW)recharge.However,major risks can be expected when the irrigation water is of poor quality.This study aims for evaluating the potential risk of TWW and GW irrigation on soil parameters.Accordingly,we evaluated the suitability of water quality through the analysis of major and minor cations and anions,metallic trace elements(MTEs),and the sodium hazard by using the sodium adsorption ratio(SAR)and the soluble sodium percentage(SSP).The risk of soil sodicity was further assessed by SAR and the exchangeable sodium percentage(ESP).The degree of soil pollution caused by MTEs accumulation was evaluated using geoaccumulation index(Igeo)and pollution load index(PLI).Soil maps were generated using inverse spline interpolation in ArcGIS software.The results show that both water samples(i.e.,TWW and GW)are suitable for soil irrigation in terms of salinity(electrical conductivity<7000μS/cm)and sodicity(SAR<10.00;SSP<60.00%).However,the contents of PO_(4)^(3-),Cu^(2+),and Cd^(2+)exceed the maximum threshold values set by the national and other standards.Concerning the soil samples,the average levels of SAR and ESP are within the standards(SAR<13.00;ESP<15.00%).On the other hand,PLI results reveal moderate pollution in the plot irrigated with TWW and no to moderate pollution in the plot irrigated with GW.Igeo results indicate that Cu^(2+)is the metallic trace element(MTE)with the highest risk of soil pollution in both plots(Igeo>5.00),followed by Ni^(2+)and Pb^(2+).Nevertheless,Cd^(2+)presents the lowest risk of soil pollution(Igeo<0.00).Statistical data indicates that Ca^(2+),Na+,Ni^(2+),and Pb^(2+)are highly distributed in both plots(coefficient of variation>50.0%).This study shows that the use of imagery tools,such as ArcGIS,can provide important information for evaluating the current status of soil fertility or pollution and for better managing soil irrigation with TWW.

Case Report of a Pseudoaneurysm of Ascending Aorta Treated by Stent

Pseudoaneurysms of the ascending aorta are a rare complication of aortic and cardiac surgery. In this article, we present a clinical case of a 56-year-old patient with a fortuitous diagnosis of a pseudoaneurysm of ascending aorta that was treated by an endovascular stent-graft. We discuss in this article the diagnostic and therapeutic aspect of the case and the place of endovascular treatment for the ascending aorta.

Antibiotic Resistant Bacteria from Treated and Untreated Hospital Wastewater at Ayder Referral Hospital, Mekelle, North Ethiopia

The widespread emergence of antibiotic resistance among bacterial pathogens has become one of the most serious challenges in Ethiopia. This study determined the prevalence and drug resistance patterns of bacterial pathogens isolated from treated and untreated wastewater released from Ayder Referral Hospital in Northern Ethiopia. A cross sectional study design was conducted from September-December, 2015 in wastewater released from Ayder referral hospital. A total of 40 composite samples were aseptically collected, transported and processed for enumeration of indicator organisms, bacteriological identification and susceptibility testing following standard procedure. Data obtained were entered and analyzed using SPSS version 20. Mean heterotrophic plate count, total coliform count, fecal coliform count and E. coli count were found to be 1.6 × 106 CFU/mL, 2.2 × 106 CFU/100 mL, 2.0 × 105 CFU/100 mL and 1.1 × 104 CFU/100 mL from treated wastewater respectively. Among the total samples 134 bacterial isolates were detected and [84 (62.7%)] were from untreated wastewater and [50 (37.3%)] were from treated wastewater. The most frequently isolated bacteria from untreated wastewater samples was Klebsiella spp [14 (16.7%)] followed by S. aureus [13 (15.5%)] and P. aeruginosa [12 (14.3%)], similarly in treated wastewater samples Klebsiella spp [10 (20%)], P. aeruginosa [8 (16%)] and S. aureus [8 (16%)] were frequently detected. The overall multi-drug resistance (MDR) in this study was [79/134 (79.1%)]. MDR from untreated wastewater sample was [64/84 (76.2%)] while from treated wastewater sample was [42/50 (84%)] and shows significant difference with (COR: 1.64, 95% CI: 1.15 - 3.29, P: 0.001). It is concluded that treated hospital wastewater contains large numbers of antibiotic resistant bacteria. Therefore, there should be continuous monitoring and evaluation of the effluent quality of the ponds and chlorination of the final effluent should be developed.

Treated wastewater irrigation effect on soil,crop and environment:Wastewater recycling in the loess area of China

A study was carded out at the Loess Plateau in Dongzhi, China, to test the feasibility of using secondary treatment sewage effluent and to determine whether the water quality would then meet the recommended irrigation norm. Seven crops, including celery, wheat, maize, millet, apples, rapeseed and yellow beans, were tested in the study. Physical and chemical properties of the soil, crop yield and quality and leachate at different soil depths were measured. In most cases, the quality of the crops that made use of treated sewage was not distinctively different from those that did not use treated sewage. However, yields for the former were much higher than they were for the latter. Leachates at different soil depths were analyzed and the results did not show alarming levels of constituents. For a period of approximately 14 months, the treated sewage irrigation had no significant effect on the loess soil and no cases of illness resulting from contact with the treated sewage were reported. With treated sewage irrigation, a slight increase in the organic content of the soil was observed.

Biosorption of copper ions from dilute aqueous solutions on base treated rubber (Hevea brasiliensis) leaves powder: kinetics, isotherm, and biosorption mechanisms

The effciency of sodium hydroxide treated rubber (Hevea brasiliensis) leaves powder (NHBL) for removing copper ions from aqueous solutions has been investigated. The e?ects of physicochemical parameters on biosorption capacities such as stirring speed, pH, biosorbent dose, initial concentrations of copper, and ionic strength were studied. The biosorption capacities of NHBL increased with increase in pH, stirring speed and copper concentration but decreased with increase in biosorbent dose and ionic strength. The isotherm study indicated that NHBL fitted well with Langmuir model compared to Freundlich and Dubinin-Radushkevich models. The maximum biosorption capacity determined from Langmuir isotherm was 14.97 mg/g at 27°C. The kinetic study revealed that pseudo- second order model fitted well the kinetic data, while Boyd kinetic model indicated that film diffusion was the main rate determining step in biosorption process. Based on surface area analysis, NHBL has low surface area and categorized as macroporous. Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) analyses revealed that hydroxyl, carboxyl, and amino are the main functional groups involved in the binding of copper ions. Complexation was one of the main mechanisms for the removal of copper ions as indicated by FT-IR spectra. Ion exchange was another possible mechanism since the ratio of adsorbed cations (Cu2+ and H+) to the released cations (Na+, Ca2+, and Mg2+) from NHBL was almost unity. Copper ions bound on NHBL were able to be desorbed at > 99% using 0.05 mol/L HCl, 0.01 mol/L HNO3, and 0.01 mol/L EDTA solutions.

Key parameters controlling electrical resistivity and strength of cement treated soils

The improvement of question soils with cement shows great technical, economic and environmental advantages. And interest in introducing electrical resistivity measurement to assess the quality of cement treated soils has increased markedly recently due to its economical, non-destructive, and relatively non-invasive advantages. This work aims to quantify the effect of cement content （aw）, porosity （nt）, and curing time（T） on the electrical resistivity （p） and unconfined compression strength （UCS） of cement treated soil. A series of electrical resistivity tests and UCS tests of cement treated soil specimen after various curing periods were carried out. A modified Archie empirical law was proposed taking into account the effect of cement content and curing period on the electrical resistivity of cement treated soil. The results show that nt/（aw·T） and nt/（aw·T^1/2） ratio are appropriate parameters to assess electrical resistivity and UCS of cement treated soil, respectively. Finally, the relationship between UCS and electrical resistivity was also established.

Effect of restoration technique on resistance to fracture of endodontically treated anterior teeth with flared root canals

This study was designed to compare the impact of post and core systems on resistance to fracture of endodontically treated anterior teeth with flared root canals and to assess their fracture pattern. Sixty central incisors were cut horizontally 2 mm coronal to the cementoenamel junction(CEJ). After root canal therapy, teeth were assigned into 6 groups(n = 10 each) based on a post system and used as follows: Group C, non-flared root received size #1 glass fiber posts(Control); Group AP, flared root restored with anatomical post; Group RC, flared root restored with size #1 fiber post and cemented with thick layer of resin cement; Group CR, flared root restored with size #1 and reinforced with composite resin; Group CM, cast post-core; Group CP, CAD/CAM polymer-infiltrated ceramic post and core.Following post cementation, core build-up and crown insertion, the specimens were thermo-cycled up to 10,000 cycles(5 C/55 C; 30 seconds dwell time, 6 seconds transition time) and then statically loaded at 1 mm/minute crosshead speed using a universal testing machine. One-way ANOVA and Tukey HSD post hoc test(α= 0.05) were used for data analysis. Group C recorded significantly higher resistance to fracture values [(826.9±39.1) N] followed by group CP [(793.8±55.6) N] while group RC yielded the lowest fracture resistance values [(586.7±51.4) N]. The resistance to fracture of wide root canals can be enhanced by using one-piece CAM/CAM post and core as an alternative to the use of either glass fiber post, relined with composite resin increasing the thickness of luting cement or the use of cast post and core system. However, this was an in vitro investigation and further in vivo studies are necessary.

Acute effects of chlorpyryphos-ethyl and secondary treated effluents on acetylcholinesterase and butyrylcholinesterase activities in Carcinus maenas

The acute effects of commercial formulation of chlorpyrifos-ethyl （Dursban ） and the secondary treated industrial/urban effluent （STIUE） exposure on acetylcholinesterase （ACHE） and butyrylcholinesterase （BuChE） activities in hepatopancreas and gills of Mediterranean crab Carcinus maenas were investigated. After 2 d of exposure to chlorpyriphos-ethyl, the AChE activity was inhibited in both organs at concentrations of 3.12 and 7.82 μg/L, whereas the BuCHE was inhibited only at higher concentration 7.82 μg/L of commercial preparation Dursban~. The exposure of crabs to Dursban （3.12 μg/L） showed a significant decrement of ACHE activity at 24 and 48 h, whereas the BuChE was inhibited only after 24 h and no inhibition for both enzymes was observed after 72 h. Moreover, a significant repression of AChE activity was observed in both organs of C. maenas exposed to 5% of STIUE. Our experiments indicated that the measurement of AChE activity in gills and hepatopancreas of C. maenas would be useful biomarker of organophosphorous （OP） and of neurotoxic effects of STIUE in Tunisia.

Evolution of deformation property and strength component mobilization for thermally treated Beishan granite under compression

The cohesion weakening and friction strengthening(CWFS)model for rock reveals the strength components mobilization process during progressive brittle failure process of rock,which is very helpful in understanding mechanical properties of rock.However,the used incremental cyclic loading−unloading compression test for the determination of strength components is very complicated,which limits the application of CWFS model.In this paper,incremental cyclic loading−unloading compression test was firstly carried out to study the evolution of deformation and the strength properties of Beishan granite after various temperatures treated under different confining pressures.We found the axial and lateral unloading modulus are closely related to the applied stress and damage state of rock.Based on these findings,we can accurately determine the plastic strain during the entire failure process using conventional tri-axial compression test data.Furthermore,a strength component(cohesive and frictional strength)determination method was developed using conventional triaxial compression test.Using this method,we analyzed the variation of strength mobilization and deformation properties of Beishan granite after various temperatures treated.At last,a non-simultaneous strength mobilization model for thermally treated granite was obtained and verified by numerical simulation,which demonstrated the effectiveness of the proposed strength determination method.

Clinical Observation on 57 Cases with Medical Amenorrhea Treated by Acupuncture

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Characteristics and Driven Factors of Nitrous Oxide and Carbon Dioxide Emissions in Soil Irrigated with Treated Wastewater

The reuse of treated wastewater in agricultural systems could partially help alleviate water resource shortages in developing countries. Treated wastewater differs from fresh water in that it has higher concentrations of salts, Escherichia coli and presence of dissolved organic matter, and inorganic N after secondary treatment, among others. Its application could thus cause environmental consequences such as soil salinization, ammonia volatilization, and greenhouse gas emissions. In an incubation experiment, we evaluated the characteristics and effects of water-filled pore space （WFPS） and N input on the emissions of nitrous oxide （N2O） and carbon dioxide （CO2） from silt loam soil receiving treated wastewater. Irrigation with treated wastewater （vs. distilled water） significantly increased cumulative N2O emission in soil （117.97 μg N kg-1）. Cumulative N2O emissions showed an exponentially increase with the increasing WFPS in unamended soil, but the maximum occurred in the added urea soil incubated at 60% WFPS. N2O emissions caused by irrigation with treated wastewater combined with urea-N fertilization did not simply add linearly, but significant interaction （P〈0.05） caused lower emissions than the production of N2O from the cumulative effects of treated wastewater and fertilizer N. Moreover, a significant impact on cumulative CO2 emission was measured in soil irrigated with treated wastewater. When treated wastewater was applied, there was significant interaction between WFPS and N input on N2O emission. Hence, our results indicated that irrigation with treated wastewater should cause great concern for increasing global warming potential due to enhanced emission of N2O and CO2.

PROBING A STOCHASTIC EPIDEMIC HEPATITIS C VIRUS MODEL WITH A CHRONICALLY INFECTED TREATED POPULATION

The hepatitis C virus is hitherto a tremendous threat to human beings,but many researchers have analyzed mathematical models for hepatitis C virus transmission dynamics only in the deterministic case.Stochasticity plays an immense role in pathology and epidemiology.Hence,the main theme of this article is to investigate a stochastic epidemic hepatitis C virus model with five states of epidemiological classification:susceptible,acutely infected,chronically infected,recovered or removed and chronically infected,and treated.The stochastic hepatitis C virus model in epidemiology is established based on the environmental influence on individuals,is manifested by stochastic perturbations,and is proportional to each state.We assert that the stochastic HCV model has a unique global positive solution and attains sufficient conditions for the extinction of the hepatotropic RNA virus.Furthermore,by constructing a suitable Lyapunov function,we obtain sufficient conditions for the existence of an ergodic stationary distribution of the solutions to the stochastic HCV model.Moreover,this article confirms that using numerical simulations,the six parameters of the stochastic HCV model can have a high impact over the disease transmission dynamics,specifically the disease transmission rate,the rate of chronically infected population,the rate of progression to chronic infection,the treatment failure rate of chronically infected population,the recovery rate from chronic infection and the treatment rate of the chronically infected population.Eventually,numerical simulations validate the effectiveness of our theoretical conclusions.

Water quality of reclaimed water from treated urban wastewater in Chaobai River Basin,North China

The utilization of reclaimed water could be an efficient tool to alleviate water scarcity,especially for dry river augmentation.However,it is crucial to monitor water quality to ensure safety to human health and to avoid negative effects on the environment.Reclaimed water samples were collected bimonthly from May to November in 2010 in Chaobai River,and the physiochemical parameters were determined.The main results are as follows:The parameters exceeding the threshold value of the water guidelines are mainly nutrition related to nitrogen and phosphorus,which are known to increase the risk of eutrophication in surface waters.Additionally,nitrite and nitrate can be detrimental to human health.The majority of the parameters have a peaking concentration in May,whereas others either show significant temporal variation over the entire period or remain relatively constant in all four months.Correlation analysis shows that some parameters(pH,T and B) have no significant correlation with others,whereas significant positive correlation was found for Sr with EC and TDS,for CI with TDS,for Si02 with TP and for NO3-N with TN and a significant negative correlation between SO4 and Ba.According to principal component analysis,60.108%of the total data is represented by dominant solutes,and the second principal component with a percentage of 31.876 comprises parameters related to nitrogen.Subsequent cluster analysis of parameters identified four groups,which represent different compositions,and samples in May differ from others.

Tests to evaluate the ecological impact of treated ballast water on three Chinese marine species

Ballast water has been a topic of concern for some time because of its potential to introduce invasive species to new habitats. To comply with the International Convention for the Control and Management of Ships' Ballast Water and Sediments, members of the International Maritime Organization(IMO) must equip their ships with on-board treatment systems to eliminate organism release with ballast water. There are many challenges associated with the implementation of this IMO guideline, one of which is the selection of species for testing the ecological impacts of the treated ballast water. In the United States, ballast water toxicity test methods have been defined by the United States Environmental Protection Agency. However, the test methods had not been finalized in China until the toxicity test methods for ballast water were established in 2008. The Chinese methods have been based on species from three trophic levels: Skeletonema costatum, Neomysis awatschensis, and Ctenogobius gymnauchen. All three species live in broad estuarine and open sea areas of China; they are sensitive to reference toxicants and acclimatize easily to different conditions. In this paper, the biological characteristics, test processes and statistical analysis methods are presented for the three species. Results indicate that the methods for evaluating these three organisms can be included in the ecological toxicity tests for treated ballast water in China.

Clinical Observation on Quality of Life in Coronary Artery Bypass Grafting Patients Treated According to Syndrome Differentiation of TCM

Objective: To evaluate the clinical effect and quality of life (QOL) in coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) patients treated according to syndrome differentiation of TCM. Methods: Eighty-two CABG patients were allocated in the control group (n = 39) treated with conventional method of western medicine, and the TCM-treated group (n

Bilateral choroidal osteoma with unilateral polypoidal choroidal vasculopathy treated with conbercept

Dear Editor,Chorodial osteoma(CO) is a rare choroidal tumor characterized by the presence of mature bone tissue predominantly in the juxtapapillary or macularregion.CO mostly affects young healthy females in the second or third decades of life.It is unilateral in approximately 80%of cases[1],as patients have no obvious visual symptoms during the early stage of CO,and the growth of CO is slow.CO patients usually visit the eye clinic during the later stages of CO and have poor vision.Gradual decline in vision in CO patients is related to changes in retinal pigment epithelium(RPE)and photoreceptor atrophy.Choroidal neovascularization(CNV)and the resultant subretinal fluid and hemorrhage are the most frequent causes of sudden vision loss in CO[2].We report a rare case of bilateral CO with unilateral polypoidal choroidal vasculopathy(PCV)in a middle-aged male.

Sixty-one Cases of Angina Pectoris due to Coronary Heart Disease Treated by External Use of the Paste of Nitrum and Realgar Powder on Zhiyang(GV 9)

In order to inquire into the therapeutic effects of Xiao Shi Xiong Huang San (硝石雄黄散the Nitrum and Realgar Powder), one of the Dunhuang Prescription, on angina pectoris due to coronary heart disease (APCHD), the authors have treated 61 cases of APCHD by externally applying paste of the powder on Zhiyang (GV 9), with another 30 cases of APCHD treated with the nitroglycerin paste on Zhiyang as the controls. The results showed that the total effective rate was 82% and markedly effective rate 31.2% in the treatment group (the Paste of Nitrum and Realgar Powder), and the total effective rate was 46.6% and markedly effective rate 23.2% in the control group (the nitroglycerin paste). The difference in therapeutic effects between the two groups was very significant (P<0.01), indicating that the therapeutic effect of the former was significantly superior to that of the latter.

Life Cycle Assessment of CCA-Treated Wood Highway Guard Rail Posts in the US with Comparisons to Galvanized Steel Guard Rail Posts

A cradle-to-grave life cycle assessment is done to identify the environmental impacts of chromated copper arsenate (CCA)-treated timber used for highway guard rail posts, to understand the processes that contribute to the total impacts, and to determine how the impacts compare to the primary alternative product, galvanized steel posts. Guard rail posts are the supporting structures for highway guard rails. Transportation engineers, as well as public and regulatory interests, have increasing need to understand the environmental implications of guard rail post selection, in addition to factors such as costs and service performance. This study uses a life cycle inventory (LCI) to catalogue the input and output data from guard rail post manufacture, service life, and disposition, and a life cycle impact assessment (LCIA) to assess anthropogenic and net greenhouse gas (GHG), acidification, smog, ecotoxicity, and eutrophication potentially resulting from life cycle air emissions. Other indicators of interest also are tracked, such as fossil fuel and water use. Comparisons of guard rail post products are made at a functional unit of one post per year of service. This life cycle assessment (LCA) finds that the manufacture, use, and disposition of CCA-treated wood guard rails offers lower fossil fuel use and lower anthropogenic and net GHG emissions, acidification, smog potential, and ecotoxicity environmental impacts than impact indicator values for galvanized steel posts. Water use and eutrophication impact indicator values for CCA-treated guard rail posts are greater than impact indicator values for galvanized steel guard rail posts.

Compressive and Flexural Strengths of Cement Stabilized Earth Bricks Reinforced with Treated and Untreated Pineapple Leaves Fibres

This study compares the effect of treated pineapple leaves fibres (T-PALF) with sodium hydroxide solution and untreated fibres (N-PALF) on the compressive and flexural strength of earth bricks stabilized with 3% and 5% cement. The fibre content ranged from 0% to 5% in steps of 1% by weight. The compressive strength tests were made at 7, 14, 21 and 28 days of curing;the flexural strength test were conducted at 28th day only. The results show that the T-PALF had a higher compressive strength when comparing to the N-PALF. The highest compressive strength of the bricks was obtained at 28 days of curing. The compressive strength at 28 days of stabilized brick at 3% and 5% of cement reinforced with T-PALF were 4.01 and 4.81 MPa, respectively, while the one reinforced with N-PALF was 3.19 and 4.63 MPa, respectively. The results further show that the highest flexural strength of both stabilized bricks at 3% and 5% of cement reinforced with T-PALF and N-PALF was obtained with the bricks stabilized with 5% of cement reinforced with T-PALF. This results show that bricks stabilized with 5% cement and reinforced with 3% of treated fibres content are good for construction of load bearing walls. It was observed;a significant improvement of the reinforced blocks under flexure than under compression.

Socio-cultural factors influencing insecticide treated bed net utilization in a malaria endemic city in north-central Nigeria

Objective:To ascertain the socio-cultural factors influencing the rate of utilization of insecticide treated bed nets(ITNs) in a malaria endemic city of Makurdi,north central Nigeria. Methods:The study was cross-sectional in nature using systematic sampling method to identify households.Both quantitative and qualitative data was generated from adult women using structured and semi structured questionnaires,and focused group discussions(FGDs) to obtain information on rate and patterns of utilization of ITNs.Information such as age,educational level, marital status,awareness or otherwise of the existence of malaria,and factors influencing rate of ownership and utilization of ITNs were obtained.FGDs were used to obtain qualitative information on rate of utilization of ITNs not captured in the questionnaires.Data obtained was analysed using Epi Info 6 statistical software.Results:Among the respondents interviewed,97.0% (2 013/2 075) were aware of existence of malaria and 87.0% of these(1 751/2 013) would associate it with mosquitoes.The rate of ownership of any bed net,ITNs and untreated bed nets(UTNs) was 25.1% ,17.0% and 8.3% ,respectively.Utilization of ITNs among children was 30.0% (112/373) and UTNs 12.9% (48/373).Positive contributors to ITNs utilization were literacy,enhanced economy, experience of marriage,and being gainfully employed(P【0.05);while negative contributors were ignorance,poverty and some cultural beliefs and values.Conclusions:A more synchronized advocacy should be carried out on the potential benefits of ITNs utilization and sustained.Also ITNs should be made available to the people of the community at minimal or no cost.