This paper presents a study on the migration into a soil structure of a pollutant, a liquid petroleum product. Accidental pollution with a liquid petroleum product can also be considered to crack a transport pipeline. This leads to the displacement of the pollutant in the soil structure, both horizontally and vertically. The study presents an analysis of the migration velocity in the soil structure, with certain physical properties, of both the soil and the pollutant petroleum product. The penetration of petroleum products to a certain depth in soil is influenced by its humidity, grain size and density, pollution intensity, viscosity and pollutant density. It was possible to calculate for the first time at the experimental laboratory level the depth of penetration of the pollutant.

This paper presents some results of an experimental investigation of the possibility of using an “in-foam UV/air oxidation” process for the degradation of anionic surfactants. In this process, only the foam generated by bubbling air through the surfactant solution is exposed to the UV-C light, followed by recirculation to solution using a positive displacement pump. The developed process, tested for sodium dodecylbenzenesulfonate and sodium dodecylsulfate 0.3-0.5 mM aqueous solutions seems to be promising, even compared with advanced oxidation processes such as UV/H2O2 , depending on photosensitizer dose. Based on the analysis presented in this article the “in-foam UV/air oxidation” process has surprisingly good performances related to both surfactant concentration (primary degradation) and chemical demand (mineralization), but is limited by the lowest useful foaming concentration. The foam acts as a support for photochemical reactions, as it concentrates the surfactant to a high area interface, where it is exposed to the UV light and oxygen. By contrast, when only the solution is exposed to UV light, the “in-solution UV/air oxidation” process, the efficiency is low and, as expected, higher for the UV-absorbing aromatic compound sodium dodecylbenzenesulfonate. The “in-foam UV/air oxidation” process can be used as a pretreatment before biological aerobic treatment of clear waste water containing surfactants and is also an interesting research alternative for the oxidation of other organic compounds. This process can be refined by adding phosensitizers.

This article provides a detailed analysis of the fundamental elements required prior to conducting on-field research of an areas chosen as case studies for the assessment of soil and water quality in the unpolluted zones. The ultimate goal of the research to be carried out over the next two years is to obtain solid and reliable data on the quality of the two environmental components in these areas. All the data obtained will be integrated into a solid and georeference database, consisting of a sample identification module (soil and water) and a module of a varied parameters that will contain up to 42 parameters analyzed in the testing laboratories. Finally, the article presents the conclusions regarding the transposition of the proposed objectives into field and laboratory activities, graphical and descriptive details integrated into a conceptual model, universally valid in order to evaluate protected natural areas without direct anthropogenic impact. Particular importance in assessing these areas is attributed to detailing aspects that can influence the research results in major way. Issues related to the sampling and subsampling of soil and water samples, their conservation and transport to the laboratory are considered relevant and major. Geomorphological criteria of details, geographic and geological information are considered important in assessing the areas chosen as case studies. The five areas selected in the present study have been described and a number of objectives and activities have been proposed for on-site research to be carried out in the near future.

Sulphate is the specific anion present in the acid rock drainage (ARD). Although sulphate is considered benign or with low toxicity, some countries have set limits for the wastewater discharged to natural receivers, often 500 mg/L or 600 mg/L. By conventional treatment of the ARD with calcium hydroxide, some gypsum can precipitate, depending on the ARD initial sulphate content, but the conformity for sulphate will not be achieved, because the concentration correlated to gypsum solubility exceeds the limit value by roughly three times. An experimental study has been carried out to assess sulphate precipitation via ettringite process from acid rock drainage originating from closed non-ferrous mine site in the North Romanian mining area. Tests for sulphate precipitation, using monocalcium aluminate cement as source of reactive aluminium for the ettringite formation, showed important differences regarding sulphate precipitation yield between batch and continuous flow reaction systems, due to reaction system itself. For continuous stirred tank reactor system (CSTR) a total space-time of 2.6 h is required when operating with cement dose equivalent to 265 mg Al for 1 g sulphate in order to safe meet the sulphate discharge limit of 600 mg/L for mine water with initial c(SO42-) = 2650 mg/L and at a temperature of 15 oC.

The paper presents different aspects of interest found during hazards pre-assessments of priority dangerous substances discharged in sewage system by different economic agents and the way their discahrges should be regulated. The used methodology is based on sustainable development approach principles such are: "polluter pays principle", "precautionary principle", and "intergenerational equity principle". It is designed as a site examination of activities, raw materials, products and services and analytical test reports of the sewage-discharged wastewaters. The obtained results are used to evaluate hazards. An expert value judgement multi-criteria approach substantiates the evaluating process. In those screenings, we found heavy metlas in ranges of tens of µg/L. We compared the obtained values with the stated limits in different legal regulatory documents and critically discussed some challenges in applying the law for permit purposes in order to find a possible optimal course of action in managing the risk of water bodies of not having the required quality. The new methodology is of practical use being successfully tested at different economic agents discharging in a municipal sewage system.

This paper continues the presentation of the case studies on waste dangerousness assessment. Due to the particularities that shows many of the waste generated in industry, in particular, each analysis represents a special case. The application of the methodology for determining the dangerousness of waste (carried out and used by our institute, still in the absence of rules for the implementation of legislation on waste management), often faces challenges regarding the estimation (with an error as low as possible) of the concentration for the potential components from the waste, necessary to establish the hazardous/non-hazardous character of the waste and, implicitly, for its correct classification in the waste list. In this respect, the case study presented is that of a waste from drilling muds.

The continuous increase of the volume of waste, in direct correlation with the number of the population represents an important problem for the specialists involved in waste management and the identification of the most efficient solutions for their management in an environmentally friendly way with minimal impact on the environment. A large-scale waste reduction solution is to incinerate them in dedicated installations with strict control over air pollutant emissions from the incineration process. The paper presents the results of the tests carried out in two types of waste incinerators for the assessment of pollutant emissions in the air in order to reduce them and to meet the requirements of the environmental regulations in this field.

The paper presents the results obtained by performing specific activities aimed to assess the quality of the soil and water components (surface and groundwater) in Copsa Mica, a small town from Romania, well known for the historical pollution recorded over several decades. It is known that the contamination was induced by the industrial activities carried out in the area, which is caused by sulfur dioxide air emissions and atmospheric particulate matters containing heavy metals, mainly cadmium, lead and zinc. The pollution of the city and the neighboring areas was mainly due to activities of two companies: SC Sometra SA (with a non-ferrous metallurgy profile, which before 1990 was considered the largest unit in the country) and SC Carbosin SA (with a chemical profile until its closing, in 1993). The assessment of the quality level of the environmental factors was carried out in 2016 through specific activities for soil and water quality investigation - sampling and physico-chemical analysis in R&D Institute for Industrial Ecology ECOIND laboratories, in order to highlight relevant elements of environmental quality of the above mentioned year, within a pre-established experimental field and targeting the limited area of the Copsa Mica city. As an important aspect, it is worth mentioning that the footprint of the pollution sources is still present in the area, even long after their activity has ceased. It is estimated that a soil and water monitoring could establish a dynamics of the quality parameters in the Copsa Mica area during the subsequent periods.

At the end of its course of 2857 km running to the Black Sea, the Danube River - the longest river in the European Union shapes a river delta, an exclusive area consisting of a complexity of water and land, numerous lakes, ponds, marshes and unique waterways. The Danube Delta, considered the Europe's largest wetlands, is included in Unesco's World Heritage list, due to its outstanding importance conferred by the many natural habitats with their specific characteristics and bio diversities, preserved in a near pristine state. Even though considerable conservation efforts have been made lately, the Danube Delta is still subject to threats due to both natural and anthropogenic stressors that may alter its ecosystems. This study aims to investigate the water and bed-sediment general characteristics of some lakes from the Matița - Merhei Depression located in the fluvial delta plain, to assess the current quality status of water and sediments. A significant number of water and sediment samples were collected from each lake in October 2016, for determination of water physicalchemical parameters, lithological components and some heavy metals - analysed in random bed-sediment samples. The investigation results show that the water environment-related indicators fluctuated in terms of sampling sites and generally agreed with the Romanian environmental quality criteria. Average lithological composition of the bed-sediments indicates an autochthonous source for the recent accumulation of sediments. Overall, the technophyllic heavy metal concentrations of the bed-sediments were below the limits of the quality criteria. The exceptions were represented by local values, incidentally exceeding the recommended limit.

Nowadays, the air pollution has become a major environmental problem due to rapid increase of industrialization and anthropogenic activities which led to climate change. Air pollution is considered as a harmful agent for human health. Different classes of pollutants like gaseous (SOx, NOx) are continuously released in air and perceived/recognized as pollutants. Among the biological models, plants could indicate pollution load in a particular area via alterations in physiological parameters so, there is a need for reliable and sustainable air pollution monitoring and control methods.

Urban development produces wastewaters with flow and/or concentration peaks which prejudice the well functioning of a wastewater plant designed for influent categories characterized by certain domains of composition and concentration. This study aimed to investigate the conventional physico-chemical and biological treatability parameters of the influent and the removal efficiency of the treatment plants: high carbonic loading, chemical oxygen demand (COD), and low biodegradability as BOD5/COD (biochemical oxygen demand/chemical oxygen demand) ratio. The improvement of the biological biodegradability parameters in order to obtain a proper activated sludge was achieved by optimal oxygen and nutrients addition. Molasses addition to correct the BOD5/COD ratio to values ≥ 0.4, determines the increase up to 60-80% of biodegradable organic matter mineralization. COD efficiency removal increases by 1-20% vs. the results obtained for oxygen deficit and/or low biological treatability.

Water contamination with heavy metals due to industrial activities generates serious environmental problems because of their high toxicity and non-biodegradability. Various waste materials for biosorptive removal of heavy metal ions from aqueous solutions: olive leaves, almond shell residues, hazelnut shell, coconut husk, coffee ground, tea leaves, groundnut husk were selected because of a low cost and a higher biosorption capacity. The effective removal of Pb2+ from aqueous solutions using low-cost biosorbents: carrot residue and green tea waste was studied. These waste materials were selected because of a low cost and the availability of functional groups such as carbonyl, hydroxyl, carboxylic etc. due to high cellulose, hemicellulose or lignin content, which favours biosorption of heavy metal ions. The equilibrium data were described by typical Freundlich, Langmuir and Temkin adsorption models for each heavy metal - adsorbent system. The adsorption equilibrium exhibited better fit to Langmuir model within the concentration range studied for carrot residue and the adsorption of Pb2+ by green tea waste showed a slightly better fit with the Freundlich model compared to Langmuir and Temkin. This study revealed that the biosorption offers a great opportunity for a clean, cheap and high effective process for lead ions removal from polluted water.

The aim of this study was to determine the chemical composition of wet depositions in two locations from urban and rural area near Bucharest from January to May 2017. For all the samples, pH, conductivity, anions, cations and heavy metals were determined. For anions (Cl-, NO3- and SO42-) and cations (Ca2+, K+, Mg2+, Na2+) determination an ion chromatographic method was used. Heavy metals (Co, Cr, Cu, Mn, Ni, Pb and Zn) were determined using AAS with flame and graphite chamber. Results showed the presence of the interested compounds in wet depositions samples with SO42- and Ca2+ as the dominant anion and cation. Heavy metals concentration followed the trend: Zn > Mn > Cu > Pb > Ni > Cr > Co. Analysing the results obtained the potential sources of ambient air pollution were also suggested.

The hygiene process imposes a high usage of household cleaning products and personal care products, which after use reach the municipal and industrial wastewater of the sewerage networks and finally the surface waters. Depending on the physic, chemical and biological properties of the constituent substances, they could manifest various harmful effects on the aquatic organisms such as mortality, inhibition or stimulation of growth / development, and changes of the community structure linked to particular ecosystems and water quality degradation. The study objective was to highlighted the aquatic toxicity effects of some cleaning products on freshwater fish, green microalgae and planktonic crustaceans in order to correspond to EU ecolabel criteria. Three products based on anionic, non ionic and amphoteric surfactants were tested using OECD methodologies. The laboratory experiments showed non toxic acute effects on tested organisms. The acute toxicity concentrations (EC 50 / LC50) being more than 100 mg/l for each tested product. According to international norms for toxicity classification all the products were non harmful for aquatic live.

Comparison of values of destruction degree of microorganisms of different types (Micrococcus luteus, Pseudomonas fluorescens, Bacillus cereus, Sarcina lutea bacterias and Saccharomyces yeasts) under the simultaneous treatment of water by cavitation and gas is carried out. Has been determined the nature of the gas in which the cells were most actively destroyed by comparing the values of destruction degree. The greatest effectiveness of microorganisms destruction was achieved with the Ar/US-action, regardless of the type of microorganisms, their morphological characteristics and their initial amount per unit volume of water. Morphological features have an influence only on the duration of cavitation treatment of water.

The results on BSA (bovine serum) separation by membrane techniques are reported. Polysulfone-polyaniline (PSf - PANI) porous composite membranes are obtained by phase inversion with chemical reaction. PANI is obtained in-situ by oxidative aniline polymerization. The obtained composite membranes are characterized by water permeation at different pH and pressure. Polysulfone-polyaniline porous composite membranes UF processes performance to BSA separation are reported.

This work reports the performances of the polysulfone-polyaniline (PSf-PANI) porous composite membranes for proteins recovery. Polysulfone-polyaniline porous composite membranes are obtained by phase inversion with chemical reaction. PANI is obtained in-situ by oxidative aniline polymerization. Composite membranes are morphological studied by electron microscopy and characterized by water solutions permeation at different pH and pressures. Polysulfone-polyaniline porous composite membranes UF processes performances to BSA separation are also reported.

In the last decades near the hydropower lakes, have developed numerous private companies and settlements that constantly uses water from these lakes. In many cases, the spills are not controlled and are not decontaminated properly or even at all. In the Jiu hydrographic basin, there are 225 localities with a population of more than 2,000 peoples. Only 32 of them are equipped with sewer systems and only 2 of them in accordance with Directive 91/271/EEC. As consequence of the pollution with organic and inorganic substances (nutrients) has appeared the eutrophication of the lakes. From the total 12-hydropower lakes with a surface over 50 ha, eight of them are clogged in the proportion of 60%, and 3 of them in a proportion of 80%. In the first part of the paper are analyzed the main punctual and diffuse sources of organic and inorganic pollution, with a decisive factor in the development of the aquatic vegetation. During 2010-2016, a systematic campaign of measurements was done. They were determined the protection zones that need to be tracked, the catchments zone for the human consumption, the zones for protected fish or of those species economically important, the natural protected areas, and the zones vulnerable to nitrate and nitrites. The obtained results are presented for the most affected hydropower lakes from the selected area. Finally, are mentioned some possibilities and measures necessary to be followed as to reduce the inorganic and organic pollution, some conclusions, acknowledgement and references.

ignocellulosic agricultural wastes e.g. corn cobs, straws and corn stalks were converted into carbonaceous adsorbents using a sequence of thermal and chemical activation processes. The derived solids obtained after each type of activation were characterized by determination of fix carbon content, iodine number, Boehm titration and DRIFT spectrometry. The results obtained at the adsorption tests were well correlated to those of the characterization, showing that the most promising adsorbents for amoxicillin removal were those submitted to a thermal treatment followed by a chemical alkaline activation, followed by washing and a secondary thermal treatment. The most promising bio-based adsorbent was the one derived from corn stalks (90.6% adsorption efficiency).

Contemporary Project Management has conceived tools based on mathematical models for planning, scheduling and controlling the projects, the costs and resources. Critical Path Method (CPM) and Program Evaluation and Review Technique (PERT) are two network-based methods which were independently developed to assist the project managers in order to schedule complex real-life projects. A scheduling of a small-scale R&D project using these optimization time-oriented methods was accomplished. In many models of project network some activities are closely related to each other such as procurement activities of basic resources and research activities. If this precedence relationship is on the critical path, that means whitout no event slack or float time for activities, then some procurements delay may cause lag in the project’s completion time. Thus a good estimation for procurement and research activities duration is needed for a Just-in-Time project.