Greenlist(tm) Bulletin 03/18/05
This is the weekly bulletin of the TURI Library, reporting a selection of recently published titles we have acquired. Our pledge is to keep the bulletin relevant to your work and brief -- no more than 10 titles. (usually)
Titles here, abstracts below them:
1. Global Warming May Be Twice as Catastrophic as Previously Thought, February 2005
2. Scientists Challenge the Safety of Bisphenol A, February 2005
3. Surface and Mechanical Properties of Steel Processed by Electro-Plasma Technology, February 2005
4. Municipal Solid Waste Management From a Systems Perspective, February 2005
5. USDA Announces Biobased Rule, February 2005
6. Making progress Toward Sustainability by Using Cleaner
Production Technologies, Improved Design and Economically
Sound Operation of Production Facilities, April 2005
7. US Companies May Be at a Competitive Disadvantage, December 2004
8. EPA PFOA Assessment Raises Questions, January 2005
9. Potential Health Effects Cloud Nanomaterials' Growth Prospects, December 2004
10. Polyfluorinated Telomer Alcohols and Sulfonamides in the North American Troposphere, February 2004
1. TITLE Global Warming May Be Twice as Catastrophic as Previously Thought
SOURCE Chemical Week, February 2, 2005, vol. 167, no. 4, p. 7
ABSTRACT The worst-case scenario for global warming could be twice as catastrophic as previously thought, according to the findings of a study by climatologists at certain U.K. universities, including Oxford University, published in a recent edition of Nature.
2. TITLE Scientists Challenge the Safety of Bisphenol A
SOURCE Chemical Week, February 2, 2005, vol. 167, no. 4, p. 7
ABSTRACT There is consensus among the scientific research community that bisphenol A (BPA), the raw material for polycarbonate (PC), may be an endocrine-disrupting chemical that could be particularly damaging to human embryos and young children, says Frederick vom Saal, professor of biology at the University of Missouri.
3. TITLE Surface and Mechanical Properties of Steel Processed by Electro-Plasma Technology
AUTHOR Gupta, P.; Tenhundfeld
SOURCE Plating & Surface Finishing, February 2005, vol. 92, no. 2, pp. 48-52
ABSTRACT The present study involves removal of the oxide scale from A36 steel strip by Electro-Plasma Technology (EPT). The surface morphology and roughness of the cleaned strip were
analyzed and compared with grit-blasted surface. The microhardness and microstructure of the EPT-cleaned strip were compared with the parent strip. EPT efficiently cleaned the steel and created
a desirable anchor surface profile along with uniform microroughness. the microhardness and microstructure of the basis metal were not affected by EPT. EPT presents a commercially viable solution as a "Green Technology" to pickle steel, enhancing the surface characteristics and maintaining
the desired properties of the processed material.
4. TITLE Municipal Solid Waste Management From a Systems Perspective
AUTHOR Eriksson, O., et al.
SOURCE Journal of Cleaner Production, February 2005, vol. 13,
no. 3, pp. 241-252
ABSTRACT Different waste treatment options for municipal solid
waste have been studied in a systems analysis. Different
combinations of incineration, materials recycling of separatedplastic and cardboard containers, and biological treatment(anaerobic digestion and composting) of biodegradable waste, were studied and compared to landfilling. The evaluation covered use of energy resources, environmental impact and financial and environmental costs. In the study, a calculation model (ORWARE) based on methodology from life cycle assessment (LCA) was used. Case studies were performed in three Swedish
municipalities: Uppsala, Stockholm, and Alvadalen. The study shows that reduced landfilling in favor of increased recycling of energy and materials lead to lower environmental impact, lower consumption of energy resources, and lower economic costs. Landfilling of energy-rich waste should be avoided as
far as possible, partly because of the negative environmental impacts from landfilling, but mainly because of the low recovery of resources when landfilling. Differences between materials recycling, nutrient recycling and incineration are small but in general recycling of plastic is somewhat better than
incineration and biological treatment somewhat worse. When planning waste management, it is important to know that the choice of waste treatment method affects processes outside the
waste management system, such as generation of district heating, electricity, vehicle fuel, plastic, cardboard, and fertilizer.
5. TITLE USDA Announces Biobased Rule
AUTHOR Boehland, Jessica
SOURCE Environmental Building News, February 2005, vol. 14, no. 2, p. 5
ABSTRACT U.S Department of Agriculture Secretary Ann Veneman announced in January 2005 the launch of the Federal Biobased Products Preferred Procurement Program (FB4P). Authorized by section 9002 of the 2002 Farm Bill, the new rule requires federal agencies to purchase biobased products instead of
conventional products when it is practical in terms of price,
availability, and performance.
6. TITLE Making progress Toward Sustainability by Using Cleaner Production Technologies, Improved Design and Economically Sound Operation of Production Facilities
AUTHOR Klemes, Jiri; Huisingh, Don
SOURCE Journal of Cleaner Production, April 2005, vol. 13, no. 5, pp. 451-454
ABSTRACT For this special issue of the Journal of Cleaner Production, nine documents representing various aspects of Cleaner Production-related inputs are included. The papers are published in three thematic groups. The first one deals with the general aspects of sustainability theory, integrated management of resources and decision-making. The second group focuses upon improved efficiency of water use and upon wastewater minimization. The third group includes CP illustrations from within industries such as sugar, pulp and paper, oil refining and petrochemicals.
7. TITLE US Companies May Be at a Competitive Disadvantage
SOURCE Business and the Environment, December 2004, vol. XV, no. 12, p. 9
ABSTRACT ICF Consulting notes that, because the US has declined to ratify the Kyoto Protocol, US companies are at a competitive disadvantage as compared to companies in the rest of the world.
To comply with the protocol, companies around the world will reduce their emissions and sell lower-impact carbon products. Craig Ebert of ICF notes, "International competitors are already moving aggressively to compete in a world that will see increasingly stringent carbon constraints. . . . US
companies unprepared for these market changes stand to lose major business opportunities."
8. TITLE EPA PFOA Assessment Raises Questions
AUTHOR Sissell, Kara
SOURCE Chemical Week, January 19, 2005, vol. 167, no. 2, p. 8
ABSTRACT EPA has released its draft risk assessment for perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), which shows exposure to PFOA can cause cancer and immune deficiencies in laboratory animals, and could raise levels of cholesterol and triglycerides in humans.
EPA stopped short of determining any risks associated with human exposure to PFOA, which DuPont manufactures at Fayetteville, NC. EPA will turn to an outside EPA Science Advisory Board panel to help to determine risks. PFOA, also known as C-8, is used to make DuPont's Teflon polytetrafluorethylene and other fluoropolymers; automotive fuel systems; computer chip processing equipment; and other products.
9. TITLE Potential Health Effects Cloud Nanomaterials' Growth Prospects
AUTHOR Scott, Alex; Seewald, Nancy
SOURCE Chemical Week, December 15, 2004, vol. 166, no. 41, pp. 25-26
ABSTRACT The seemingly boundless growth prospects for nanomaterials are being tempered by rising concern about potential health effects. Scientists first raised concerns several years ago following the discovery that materials can be more toxic at the nanoscale, and that their small size enables them to readily enter cells via inhalation, or potentially via skin absorbtion. With products containing nanomaterials already on the market and several more waiting in the wings, regulators have begun testing to see whether there is a need for restrictions.
10. TITLE Polyfluorinated Telomer Alcohols and Sulfonamides in the North American Troposphere
AUTHOR Stock, Naomi L., et al.
SOURCE Environmental Science & Technology, February 15, 2004, vol. 38, no. 4, pp. 991-996
ABSTRACT In 2001, a sampling campaign was conducted in six
North American cities-Reno, NV; Griffin, GA; Cleves, OH; Winnipeg, MB; Long Point, ON; and Toronto, ON-to investigate the tropospheric distribution of a suite of polyfluorinated alcohols and amides. Analysis via gas chromatography-chemical ionization-mass spectrometry indicated that both polyfluorinated sulfonamides and fluorinated telomer alcohols (FTOHs) are widely distributed throughout the North American troposphere with mean concentrations ranging from 22 to 403 pg/m3 and from 11 to 165 pg/m3 respectively. The
dominant polyfluorinated contaminant was dependent on sampling location. Large mean concentrations of N-methyl perfluorooctane sulfonamidoethanol (359 pg/m3) and N-ethyl perfluorooctane sulfonamidoethanol (199 pg/m3) identified in Griffin and Reno, respectively, may indicate the release
of polyfluorinated sulfonamides to the environment through paper and carpet treatment processes. The nonuniform nature of the spatial distribution of both polyfluorinated sulfonamides and FTOHs is indicative of the importance of point sources for the dissemination of these contaminants in the North American troposphere.
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