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The future of rainwater recycling: assessing health risks and environmental impact
No full textYesThis article examines the future of rainwater recycling through a study of numerous scholarly articles, research papers, and studies on rainwater collection, its advantages, potential health hazards, and environmental consequences. Rainwater collecting systems have gained popularity as feasible alternatives to traditional water resources because of their ability to alleviate water scarcity. A comprehensive search of peer-reviewed journal articles from 2004 to 2024 was conducted using Medline, PubMed, EBSCOhost, and Google Scholar, with specific search terms and Boolean operators. The assessment explores the importance of effective disinfection and filtration technologies for reducing microbiological pollutants. It also addresses the effects of toxic contaminants, such as heavy metals, highlighting the necessity of efficient management techniques. The review provides insights into optimising rainwater collection practices for better sustainability and resilience against the impacts of climate change by evaluating regional variances and global regulatory frameworks. This paper advocates for integrated approaches that are aligned with global water security goals and sustainable development objectives by providing information to policymakers, academics, and practitioners regarding the state and future directions of rainwater recycling
Geochemical Impacts on CO2 Storage Efficiency in Deep Aquifers: A Cameroon Gulf of Guinea Case Study
No full textNoCarbon dioxide (CO2) storage serves as a greenhouse gas mitigation strategy employed by numerous nations. This study aims to explore the feasibility of CO2 storage in the Rio del Rey Basin, Gulf of Guinea region. We employ a compositional flow model, which has been validated using data from a Subsurface interpretation project in Cameroon. This work is aimed at conducting compositional numerical simulations to investigate the impact of geochemistry on CO2 aquifer storage. A conceptual development CO2 storage study has been considered for a deep aquifer reservoir formation Miocene Rio del Rey Basin, Cameroon Gulf of Guinea. The reservoir formations in this basin are set to have very good petrophysical and geological properties for it to be considered as a storage system. The aquifer formation contains various amounts of minerals which in turn would alter the injection of CO2 as the chemical and geological properties of the storage system change. Some of the chemicals would alter the CO2 fluid and rock properties and consequently the reservoir injection and storage rates and quantities of injected and stored CO2 due to minerals precipitation and vaporization phenomena within the storage system. This presents a major concern as the impact of geochemistry on CO2 injection and storage is not well understood to date which means that the development and operational strategies and costs of such a project are not fully understood and present significant deployment risk and uncertainties. The simulation results show that aquifer geochemistry strongly affects CO2 brine water storage efficiency at different scales
Changing patterns in marriage choice and related health risk in the Pakistani heritage community in Bradford UK: a qualitative study
No full textYesBackground: Children born to blood relations (consanguineous parents), primarily cousins, have higher mortality and morbidity than children born to non-consanguineous parents. Consanguinity is low in the UK but high in some communities, including the Pakistani heritage community in Bradford. There has been a marked decrease in consanguinity in the last decade and that is likely to result in reductions in excess mortality and morbidity.
Methods: Drawing on patterns of child health reported by the Born in Bradford study, augmented with a summary of the literature on motivations for choosing consanguineous unions and on the shifting characteristics of those who make this choice, questions about marriage choice and knowledge of allied health risk were devised. They were explored in four focus groups with self-identified members of the Pakistani heritage community. Groups were divided by age and gender. Discussions were analysed using Thematic Analysis.
Results: There was agreement that rates of consanguinity were declining. Older group members were concerned this might indicate a shift from tradition and damage community cohesion. Younger participants were positive about the benefits of individual choice. They felt this could be achieved without damaging community strengths. Reasons for the fall in numbers were attributed to changes within the community, including higher numbers of people staying in education beyond school. External factors, including new immigration rules, were also considered.
There was not a consensus about health risks, some older respondents were sceptical of links between marriage choice and child health and concerned about how health risks were communicated. All were concerned that marriage choice should not be used to demonise this community.
Conclusion: A commitment to sustaining community cohesion is shared by all groups. Younger people think this can be achieved despite falls in consanguinity. There are continuing challenges in communicating health risk.Wellcome [223601] through the Born in Bradford Age of Wonder grant and The National Institute for Health Research under its Applied Research Collaboration Yorkshire and Humber. The National Lottery Community Fund provided funding for Born in Bradford’s Better Start through the Better Start Bradford programme
Fintech and the evolution in financial inclusion
No full textNoFinancial inclusion has assumed increased importance in the recent years. Financial inclusion is also high on the agenda of the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and has been considered as a key enabler for seven out of 17 Sustainable Development Goals. Despite several efforts by the governments to increase financial inclusion, globally 1.4 billion people still remain unbanked. The recent years have also witnessed an increasing role being played by the technology in the financial sector. Fintech using artificial intelligence, cloud computing and big data can overcome the problems of asymmetric information and increase financial inclusion. In this chapter through the lens of literature, we examine the role of fintech in the evolution of financial inclusion
On the Versatility of the sp-, sp2‑, and sp3‑Hybridized Chalcogen-Bearing Molecules To Engage in Type I Chalcogen···Chalcogen Interactions: A Quantum Mechanical Investigation of Like···Like and Unlike Complexes
Get PDFYesThe predilection of sp-, sp2-, and sp3-hybridized chalcogen-bearing
molecules to engage in type I chalcogen···chalcogen interactions was comparatively
unveiled in like···like/unlike CY···YC, YCY···YCY, and F2Y···YF2 (where Y = O, S, and
Se) complexes, respectively. Upon the optimized monomers, a potential energy surface
(PES) scan was conducted to pinpoint the most favorable complexes. The energetic
findings unveiled the ability of the investigated systems to engage in the interactions
under study with binding energy values ranging from −0.36 to −2.33 kcal/mol.
Notably, binding energies were disclosed to align in the posterior sequence; sp2- (i.e.,
YCY···YCY) > sp- (i.e., CY···YC) > sp3- (i.e., F2Y···YF2) hybridized complexes, except
the like···like oxygen-bearing complexes. Instead, the highest negative binding energy
values were detected for the OCO···OCO followed by those of the F2O···OF2 and
CO···OC complexes. Furthermore, the like···like selenium-bearing complexes demonstrated the most considerable binding energies compared to the other investigated complexes. Remarkably, the quantum theory of atoms in molecules and noncovalent interaction
index analyses revealed the highly directional and closed-shell nature of the investigated chalcogen···chalcogen interactions.
Symmetry adapted-perturbation theory findings outlined the dispersion forces as the commanding forces for all the studied complexes. These observations will provide convincing justifications for the nature of chalcogens within type I chalcogen···chalcogen
interactions, leading to increased progress in various domains regarding drug design and materials science.Researchers Supporting Project number (RSPD2024R678), King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabi
Educators’ Perspectives on University Technology Transfer Processes in the Philippines: A Case Study
Get PDFYesAs universities extend the scope of their tasks as educational institutions to include technology transfer and commercialization of their faculty�s and students� research outputs, it becomes necessary to investigate internal systems that facilitate such processes. Existing literature on technology transfer in the Philippines is mostly focused on the transfer of a specific technology, industry�academe research and development (R&D) collaboration, the experience in a specific industry, or the experience in public Philippine higher education institutions (HEIs). The perspectives of educators and researchers who are the recipients of technology transfer services within Philippine HEIs have, so far, not yet been investigated. This paper aims to fill that gap by interviewing eight educators from four colleges in a Philippine HEI. The findings primarily reveal the importance of internal communications in the university technology transfer process.
They also reveal that, aside from entrepreneurship training, educators need to understand the intellectual property rights system to see the potential benefits of intellectual property protection and to relate intellectual property rights to their research work. This paper therefore recommends that, to promote intellectual property awareness and academic entrepreneurship in the country, HEIs need to allocate resources for intellectual property education and entrepreneurship training to encourage the active participation of researchers in Philippine HEIs in the formal technology transfer process
Evaluation of carbon calculators in construction industry: A parametric study
Get PDFYesThe construction industry has high energy demand and emissions, and its devasting impact negatively contributes to climate emergency and climate change. A review of government, professional and scientific literature has recommended multiple strategies, including renewable energy adoptions, alternative non-carbon energy sources, circular economy, net zero carbon policies and calculators. The use of carbon calculators as a tool to estimate carbon emissions has become instrumental in guiding construction professionals in selecting appropriate ‘low carbon’ materials for projects. However, the influx of carbon calculators is very important but creates problems for professionals regarding their effectiveness. Therefore, this study compares two popular carbon calculators (One Click LCA Planetary and IStructE) on a building design to ascertain their efficacy. The criteria for the comparison included formats of calculators, commercialisation of calculators, customisation of data, sustainability certifications, data sources, data entry parameters and results/outputs. The findings show a ‘mixed’ outcome regarding the strengths and weaknesses of the calculators. These criteria are key for becoming the basis of selecting an appropriate carbon calculator for analysis. The discussion shows that data for the carbon calculators from countries considered upper-middle-income and/or below are lacking; carbon calculators should be easier to use; the interoperability of carbon calculators with other digital tools is key for not just making the use of the tools attractive but makes it easier to reduce non-value activities in the construction project
Shear behavior of FRP-UHPC composite beams enhanced by FRP shear key: Experimental study and theoretical analysis
No full textYesTo investigate the shear behavior of FRP (fiber reinforced polymers)-UHPC (ultra-high performance concrete) composite beams, four-point bending tests were conducted on seven FRP-UHPC specimens and two FRP-NSC (normal strength concrete) specimens, having different width and depth of concrete flange as well as FRP shear key (FSK) spacing. The slip between FRP profiles and concrete flange was controlled by employing FSK and epoxy resin bonded hybrid connection. The failure pattern, load-deflection/strain curves, and sliding response of composite beams were analyzed to study the influence of concrete type, FSK spacing, width and thickness of concrete slab. The results indicate that FRP-UHPC composite beams exhibited shear failure, while FRP-NSC composite beams experienced bending-shear failure. The composite beams demonstrated shear-lag effect, which became more pronounced with the increasing of the concrete slab width. The use of UHPC, reducing FSK spacing, and increasing the size of cross-section of concrete flange can effectively enhance the shear performance and reduce interface sliding. Formulae were developed to predict the shear capacity and deflection, considering shear deformation. The results predicted by the formulae developed match well with the experimental results
Synthesis and Biological Evaluation of Novel Glycomimetics
Get PDFCarbohydrate molecules play important roles in the biology of the cell as sources of energy and as a constituent of glycoproteins. In many diseases, such as cancer, energy production and biosynthesis of glycoproteins are dysregulated. This thesis explores two methods for the synthesis of molecules that interfere with these processes and, therefore, can be potential starting points in a drug discovery programme.
The first method is to change the main skeleton core of the sugar by synthesising a carbasugar, using the cycloaddition of a novel 2H-pyran-2-one. The second method is changing the groups that decorate the sugar molecule by preparing two novel
classes of glucose derivatives. In the first chapter, recent methodologies for synthesising carbasugars are described.
The second chapter explored using pyrone cycloaddition to synthesise pseudodisaccharides as potential Golgi α-mannosidase II inhibitors. The synthesis is performed over seven steps. Further optimisation is needed to increase the overall yield. Also, an enzyme assay has to be performed to confirm the biological activity of the synthesised compound. The third chapter describes the synthesis of glucose-6-phosphoramidic acid and glucose-6-triazole derivatives as inhibitors of HK II and the biological evaluation of the synthesised compounds on cancer cells. The triazoloderivatives are synthesised in fewer steps and have shown comparable inhibitory activity against cancer cells to the phosphoramidic acid derivatives. An enzyme assay has to be performed to confirm the mode of action of the synthesised compound against HKII. The last chapter explored the experimental procedures, characterisation of chemical compounds, and details of biological evaluations.Egyptian government and the Mission sector at the Ministry of Higher Educatio