Iranian Journal of Health, Safety and Environment (IJHSE)
Not a member yet
218 research outputs found
Sort by
Removal of Direct red 12B Dye in an Integrated Fixed Film Activated Sludge Reactor (IFAS): Performance Evaluation and Kinetics Study
Get PDFThe application of biological treatment has been promising in recent years for the main advantage of biological treatment in COD and dye removal. The novelty of this study is capabilities of integrated fixed film system (IFAS) with a different arrangement of media to removal the dye and COD. The experiments were done with a survey of variables like SRT, MLSS/MLVSS, the initial concentration of dye and COD. In order to analyze data was used the first and second-order models. The result showed that the IFAS was effective even at high concentration of the dye (200mg L-1). COD reduction and dye removal efficiency were higher than 70% and 88-95%, respectively. For the biological treatment, an increase in SRT to 48hr. increased the dye and COD concentration reduction. Kinetics of COD reduction and dye removal was fitted with the second-order reaction by coefficient correlation of 0.95 and 0.97, respectively. Finally, the integration of fixed film media into the biological reactors affected performances of the system for decolorization from colored wastewater
Relationship between Non-Specific Shoulder Pain and General Health Status in Tire production Industry Workers
Get PDFIntroduction: Shoulder is among the most common sites of musculoskeletal pain. Shoulder and neck pain has been widely investigated but its etiology still remains unknown. However, it appears to be multifactorial. Despite extensive studies on shoulder pain and its etiology, studies on the effect of general health status on non-specific shoulder pain are scarce. The aim of this study was to evaluate relationship between non-specific shoulder pain and general health status in Tire production industry workers.
Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted in a large tire factory during 2013-2015 and 497 male production line workers were evaluated. Characteristics of workers at baseline were evaluated using a questionnaire covering three main domains: Demographic and occupational characteristics, general health questionnaire (GHQ) and the job content questionnaire (JCQ). subjects were followed up for developing shoulder pain for one year.
Results: At one year following the first visit, 159 (32%) subjects complained of unilateral or bilateral shoulder pain. T-test applied for quantitative variables revealed that the mean work experience, the general health questionnaire (GHQ) score and the quick exposure check (QEC) score were significantly higher in patients suffering from shoulder pain than healthy subjects (
Removal of Ortho- chlorophenol from Aqueous Solutions Using Zero-Valent Iron Nanoparticles Modified Clay (Case Clay Soils of ShahMorad Mountains in Rafsanjan)
Get PDFChlorophenols as priority pollutants are toxic. These acidic organic compounds cause digestive disorders, liver damage, and cancers. The aim of this study is Ortho- chlorophenol removal using zero-valent iron nanoparticles modified clay. In this experimental study, the clay soil was sampled from the mountains of Shah Murad, Rafsanjan, Iran. Then it was treated with hydrochloric acid. In the next step, the clay was modified with ferrous sulfate in the presence of the N2 gas to prepare magnetic clay. Then, the prepared adsorbent was used to remove o-chlorophenol as a function of pH, adsorbent dose and contact time. In addition, adsorption isotherms and kinetics were determined. The findings of the present study showed that the removal efficiency obtained by the iron nanoparticles carrying clay was higher than that of the raw clay. The highest removal efficiency (91.3 %.) was obtained for pH 4. The o-CP removal efficiency by the modified clay increased from 35.9 to 82.7 as the adsorbent dosage is increased from 0.05 to 1 g after 120min contact time. The Langmuir isotherm model and the second-order kinetic model provided the best fit to the experimental data compared to other studied models. The results showed that the modified adsorbent could be used an effective and readily available low-cost adsorbent for the removal of chlorophenols in industrial applications
The Effect of Radiation on Secondary Sex Ratio among Radiologists in Shiraz, Iran
Get PDFEnvironmental and occupational exposure may play a role in gender offspring. This study aimed to investigate the effect of radiation on gender ratio in the offspring of radiologists and technicians. This cross-sectional study was conducted on 262 participants with a total of 354 children. A data collection form including age, years spent in radiology practice, number of children, sex of each child, observance of radiation protection principles, and intensity of exposure based on International Commission Radiological Protection was completed. Male to female ratio was calculated 0.85 in fathers and 0.75 in mothers in comparison to this ratio estimated in Iran demographic statistics sex ratio which is 1.03. Highly-exposed parents (Prevalence ratio [PR]: 1.67, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.11-2.52), as well as fathers (PR: 2.72, 95%CI: 1.56-4.72), had a significant propensity to have female offspring. However, this criterion in female radiologists was not found to be significant (P= 0.57). Moreover, in fathers a significant relationship was found between the years spent in radiology field up to the time of the child’s birth or age of the parents’ at child’s conception with offspring gender (4-6 year: PR: 2.07, 95% CI: 1.15-3.72; ≥7 year: PR:1.81, 95%CI: 1.18-2.78). Highly-exposed radiology male personnel, as well as those exposed to radiation 4 years or more before the offspring’s birth, were more likely to have daughters than sons. Although no exact mechanism has been identified for this preponderance, further animal studies are required to evaluate whether x ray is an influential factor in offspring gender
Health Risk Factors and Working Conditions among Employs of Hospitals and Nursing Homes: A Case Study of Gwalior
Get PDFWe investigated general working conditions in the hospitals and nursing homes in Gwalior and assessed the health risk factors of employs in these hospitals April 2016 to August 2016. Sound Intensity Level (SIL) and light intensity was measured with sound and lux meter respectively. The temperature and humidity in hospitals and nursing homes was measured by thermo hygrometer. A pretested questionnaire was used to evaluate the health problems among the employs. Results indicated that employs in these hospitals were exposed to poor environmental conditions. The majority of these employs were suffering from musculoskeletal disorders, allergic reactions, respiratory disorders and other physical disorders
Exposure to Solar Ultra Violet among Taxi Drivers in Damghan Area in 2016: A Cross-Sectional Study
Get PDFUltraviolet emission from sun considered as a hazardous parts of optical waves. This study aimed at determining exposure to ultraviolet radiation among taxi drivers in Damghan. A cross-sectional survey was conducted on a sample of taxi drivers. Individual exposure to solar ultraviolet-A was assessed during day light working hours. Exposure was determined on the basis of radiation intensity and biologically cumulated standard erythema dose. Our findings showed that exposure was varied in terms of time and geographical sites. The exposure intensity ranged from 0.01 to 15.36W/m2 and from 1.42 to 28.7W/m2 inside and outside the vehicles, respectively. Drivers had the highest exposure from June till August (17.54W/m2). Results showed lower exposure in April, May, and September (12.34W/m2). Cumulative exposure based on erythema dose showed the highest value (41.0 SED) inside vehicle at 9-10 am intervals. Taxi drivers are exposed to significant ultraviolet radiation. Geographical situation and time caused variations in exposure. Future studies should focus on the health effects so that determine the risk of exposure more accurately
The Impact of Hearing Protection Devices (HPDs) on Blood Pressure in Workers Exposed to Noise: A Cross-sectional Study in a Textile Industry
Get PDFMany studies have reported that exposure to workplace noise leads to increase in blood pressure. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of hearing protection devices (HPDs) including ear plug and ear muff on the systolic and diastolic blood pressures of workers exposed to workplace noise in a textile industry. A total of 120 male workers that exposed to 95 dB noise were investigated in this study. The systolic and diastolic blood pressures of the workers were measured for three situations of earplug, earmuff and earplug along earmuff applications. Data analyses were conducted through SPSS software (version 20) and statistical tests of ANOVA and Independent Sample Tests. The comparison of mean blood pressure in three situations showed that using ear muff had a significant effect on the systolic and diastolic blood pressures in the workers. Furthermore, the use of ear plug only had an effect on the systolic blood pressure. But, the application of ear muff caused to decrease in the systolic and diastolic blood pressures only in the third stage of the study. With regard to the results in this study, in order to control the blood pressure changes of the workers, it is recommended to use ear muff in the textile industry
Utilization of Date Palm Trunk Fibers (DPTFs) Waste as a Sorbent for the Removal of Crude Oil from Aqueous Media: Equilibrium Isotherms and Kinetic Studies
Get PDFIn the present study, the efficiency of date palm trunk fibers (DPTFs) to remove crude oil from aqueous solution was evaluated. The sorbent were characterized by Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy. The effect of various parameters including contact time, pH of oil solution, particle size, initial oil concentration and adsorbent dose on oil adsorption were investigated. The results showed that the adsorption kinetic was described by pseudo-second-order model. The change in the pH of oil solution from 2–10 had no effect on the oil adsorption. The decrease of particle size of DPTFs reduced oil sorption percent. The crude oil adsorption on DPTFs was well fitted by the Langmuir model. Maximum capacity of adsorption of crude oil by DPTFs was 2500 mg g-1. The results obtained revealed that crude oil adsorption onto the date palm wastes as the abundantly available low cost and readily biodegradable material is feasible and can successfully be used as an effective adsorbent to oil spill cleanup in water basins
Relation between Wet-Bulb Globe Temperature and Thermal Work Limit Indices with Body Core Temperature
Get PDFOccupational exposure to heat stress in casting and smelting industries can cause adverse health effects on employees who working in such industries. The present study was set to assess the correlation and agreement of heat stress indices, including wet bulb globe temperature (WBGT), and thermal work limit (TWL), and the deep body temperature indices in workers of several casting and smelting industries located in the vicinity of Tehran, Iran. In This cross-sectional study 40 workers randomly selected and were examined. WBGT and TWL were the indices used for assessing heat stress, and the tympanic temperature and the oral temperature were measured as the heat strain indices. The correlation and agreement of indices were measured using SPSS vs.16. The results of the assessment of WBGT, TWL, the tympanic temperature, and oral temperature showed that 80, 17.5, 40, and 32.5 percent of workers exposed to heat stress higher than permissible limits proposed by standard bodies. Moreover, the present study showed that the significant correlation coefficient between heat stress and heat strain indices was in the range of 0.844- 0.869. Further, there was observed a good agreement between TWL and heat strain indices. The agreement between TWL and the oral temperature was 0.63 (P-value≤ 0.001) and between TWL and tympanic temperature was 0.612 (P-value≤ 0.001). However, the agreement between WBGT and heat strain indices was not satisfactory. These values were 0.154 (P-value ≥ 0.068) and 0.215 (P-value≥ 0.028) for the oral temperature and the tympanic temperature, respectively. The TWL index had a better agreement than WBGT with heat strain indices so TWL index is the better choice for assessing the heat stress in casting and metal smelting industries
Evaluation of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease Attributed to Atmospheric O3, NO2 and SO2 in Tehran City, from 2005 to 2014
Get PDFAir pollution in Tehran is considered as one of the most important factors threatening human health. High concentrations of pollutants have adverse effects on citizens and the environment. We calculated the relation between COPD and criteria air pollutants in Tehran, one of the most polluted cities in the world during 2005 to 2014.
Hourly data of pollutants include SO2, O3 and NO2 were taken from the Tehran environmental protection agency and Air Quality Control Company. The AirQ2,2,3 model that proposed by the WHO, is used to health impact assessment of pollutants in terms of hospital admission due to Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease.
Results indicated that the total cumulative number of cases due to hospital admission due to COPD in Tehran city from 2005 to 2014 for SO2, O3 and NO2 was 1806, 2941 and 2454 cases, respectively. The finding of this study showed that total mean of SO2, O3 and NO2 was higher than the standard concentration. By comparison with guideline and standards, annual concentration for SO2, O3 and NO2 was exceeded on standard level in during the study period.
This study demonstrated that a high percentage of hospital admission due to Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease resulting from these pollutants could be due to the high average concentration in the air of Tehran during 2005 to 2014. So, authorities must apply the efforts and necessities actions based on comprehensive scientific researches to control air pollutants and abate their negative effects on human health