During August 2010, between days 7 and 11, an intense dust outbreak in the atmospheric column was simultaneously detected at three AERONET stations located in the Southwestern Iberian Peninsula: Évora and Cabo da Roca, in Portugal, and Cáceres, in Spain. The transport of dust from the Sahara region towards the Iberian Peninsula is one regular phenomenon that notably influences the radiation balance as well as the atmospheric visibility at those sites overspread by these aerosols. Optical and microphysical aerosol properties, such as aerosol optical depth, Ångström exponent α, single scattering albedo and size distributions were obtained from CIMEL sun-photometer measurements performed at the three mentioned stations which belong to the AERONET network. This Saharan dust event lasted almost a week and it was analyzed in terms of several optical and microphysical aerosols properties combined with air mass back-trajectories computed by means of the Hybrid Single Particle Lagrangian Integrated Trajectory model (HYSPLIT_4), as well as with the synoptic conditions responsible for the long-range transport of the dust particles. The measurements show a significant increase in the atmospheric turbidity caused by the input of coarse particles, with daily averages of aerosol optical depth at 870nm about 0.5, daily averages of Ångström exponent α between 0.1 and 0.2, and spectral single scattering albedo increasing in 0.9 at 440nm and in 1.0 at 870nm the last two days of the dust event. All the measured values of these parameters and their variation range are typical for desert dust intrusions.

Trace gases and aerosol particle emissions from several wildfires occurring in Portugal were sampled in summer 2010. Coarse (PM_2.5-10) and fine (PM_2.5) smoke particles were collected. Sampling was performed at 1.5 m above ground, downwind from the burning area, at distances of 10 e 200 m from the flame. Tedlar bags were used for the collection of gas samples in parallel with aerosol sampling. Total volatile hydrocarbons (THC) and carbon oxides (CO₂ and CO) concentrations were determined. PM_2.5 constitutes an important fraction of PM₁₀, with a PM_2.5/PM₁₀ average ratio of 0.91±0.05. A clear predominance of carbonaceous aerosol was observed, with OC concentration always remaining much higher than EC in both size ranges (OC/TC ratios ranged between 0.99 and 0.71 for both sizes). Water-soluble inorganic ions represented less than 4% of the aerosol mass. The CO and CO₂ emission factors (EF) were around 67-383 and 1029-1655 g kg^-1 biomass (dry basis) burned, respectively. The EF ranged between 4 and 68 g kg^-1 for PM_2.5 and between 5 and 72 g kg^-1 (dry basis) for PM₁₀. For THC, EF reached values up to 28 g kg^-1 (dry basis). Levoglucosan was always present at higher concentrations than those of galactosan and mannosan.

This study investigated the characteristics of carbonaceous species in airborne PM10 at two urban areas (downtown and residence), an industry area and a background area of Ulsan, Korea. Daily PM10 samples were collected on quartz fiber filters using high volume air samplers during winter periods. The elemental carbon (EC) and organic carbon (OC) were analyzed by the thermal-optical transmittance (TOT) method. The concentrations of total carbon (TC), which were calculated as OC + EC, ranged from 1.5 to 9.9 µg/m³ accounting for 7.0-36.1 % of PM₁₀ mass. The average levels of OC and EC at the urban areas were 5.5±2.0 and 1.3±0.5 µg/m³, respectively, which are around 2.5 times higher as compared to those at the background area. The highest concentrations of OC and EC were found at the residential area with an average of 5.5±1.8 and 1.3±0.6 µg/m³, respectively, followed by the downtown and industrial areas. The average OC/EC ratios in the urban, industrial and background areas were 4.1, 6.3 and 4.3, suggesting the presence of secondary organic carbon (SOC). The significant correlations between EC and PM₁₀ concentrations and between EC and OC concentrations were found at the background and urban areas.

PICO-NARE observatory is an experimental site on Pico mountain summit (38,47ºN, 28,40ºW, 2225m altitude) in Pico Island, Azores, Portugal, where air masses from surrounding continents (Africa, Europe, Central North Atlantic and North America) carrying aerosols from anthropogenic and/or natural emissions, pass through. Aerosol composition measurements in Pico on some events of 2005 and backward trajectories of particularly trajectories corresponding to different air masses were processed. Size, morphology, and chemical composition of some individual aerosol particles were determined by FEG-SEM/EDS (Field Emission Gun-Scanning Electron Microscopy with Energy Dispersive X-ray Microanalysis). Results on aerosol composition and individual element composition for samples from different air masses give the possibility of inferring transport of aerosol with different characteristic in different air masses origins in the Atlantic Ocean atmosphere. High amounts of aerosol in samples from North Africa with high concentrations of Fe, Zn, Mn, Ca, Al and K suggest the influence of dust from Sahara and Sahel region. Nonetheless, association of S with Mg in some particles could be from volcanic emissions from basaltic magmas locally existing. These last particles also appear on air masses from North America. In this last air masses high concentration of C suggest long-range transported pollution from combustion process. In Europe particles with Fe, Al, Ca, Ti, K, Na and Cl in individual particle analyses indicates a distinct mineral dust influence with marine aerosol enrichment. These air masses have some biological material as pollen. Local air masses rich in particles with Br, Na, K and Cl suggest a predominance of marine aerosol. Some particles with high concentrations of Al could be from local soil contamination. In all air masses particles smaller than 1-3 μm are predominant signifying long-range transport aerosols, as expected.

In this work we proposed a technique to retrieve optical depth for optically thin clouds (clouds that enable the transmission of solar radiation through them). This method complements the current performance of AERONET for optically thick cloud measurements using data eliminated by the cloud-screening algorithm that are not useful to derive aerosol properties, therefore inexpensively increasing the capabilities of the sun-photometers. It is based on the computation of apparent cloud optical depths and a forward scattering correction method that exploits state-of-the-art ice cloud scattering models. This complementary procedure is applied to Cimel sun-photometer measurements performed at the Évora Geophysics Centre (Portugal, 38.6ºN, 7.9ºW, 293 m asl) in order to obtain a climatology of optical depths for optically thin clouds over middle-latitude regions. A comparison with MODIS retrievals is presented. Main features regarding annual variability from 2007 to 2010 are also reported.

This work intends to study the Saharan desert dust storms effects on clouds. This is done through the estimation of the cloud radiative forcing in the presence of mineral desert dust aerosols during a strong desert dust event that occured in the end of May 2006. The assessment of the cloud radiative forcing is made at a regional scale both at the top of the atmosphere (TOA) and at the surface levels.
The results are obtained from numerical simulations with a mesoscale atmospheric model (MesoNH) over Portugal area and nearby Atlantic Ocean.
From the results obtained it is possible to observe that, for all days under study, a cooling effect is always found both at the TOA and surface levels. Also, for these two levels and for clouds developing in a dusty atmosphere, a more pronounced cooling effect (more negative cloud radiative forcing values) is found compared with the corresponding cloud radiative forcing values for clouds developing in a dust free atmosphere.

Modifications in the climate are expected to be noticeable in different climate variables including precipitation and surface air temperature. Changes in precipitation and air temperature variability and extremes can be studied by inspecting trends in specific indices defined for daily occurrences. This approach is used in this study, which explores recent modifications in the climatology of extreme events in precipitation and surface air temperature (maximum and minimum) using data from various locations in mainland Portugal. The study is conducted by analysing trends and variations in selected specific indices derived for daily observations; this is done for different time periods and different seasons. The precipitation data are from 57 measuring stations and cover the period 1941-2007. For air temperature, data are from 23 stations and the sub-periods investigated are 1945-1975 (cooling period) and 1976-2006 (warming period). The study aims mostly at understanding variations in the intensity, frequency and duration of extreme events and pays special attention to regional differences and seasonality.

Madeira Island, Portugal, faced an intense heavy rainfall on 20 February 2010 which lost more than 40 lives and caused great damage. This event is recorded as one of the major flash flood events during the past three decades. Keeping this in view, in the present study a series of numerical experiments using the Weather Research Forecasting model and MESO-NH model at very high resolution of 1 km are performed. Lateral and boundary conditions are updated every 6 hours using NCEP FNL data for WRF model and with ECMWF IFS data for MESO-NH model, available at 1 degree and 0.25 degree resolutions, respectively. The WRF model is designed with four nested domains and an inner domain with 1 km resolution centered on the island, which is the area of interest. MESO-NH model is integrated with 3 domains and inner domain at 1 km resolution located over Madeira Island.
Both models show that the extreme rainfall event was originated by the effect of orography on the prevailing large scale flow of a conditionally unstable moist air. Experiments for other heavy rainfall events over Madeira show the same mechanism, indicating the capability of high resolution mesoscale models in reproducing this type of events. At higher resolution, convection parameterization schemes are not so important to resolve mesoscale cloud features but microphysics schemes are important. In this aspect we performed a series of sensitivity experiments with different microphysics schemes. Different cloud microphysical properties are examined and discussed. These cloud microphysical parameters are compared with satellite retrievals. Results indicate that the model is sensitive to different microphysics schemes.

Due to the population growth and rapid industrialization, world faces with diminishing energy sources and climate change. At this time, renewable energy takes an indispensible part in the energy agenda of the worlds demand. Besides, renewable energy remain an important topic of the governmental decisions for energy policies. Photovoltaic conversion of solar energy systems (PV) has less prevalence among other renewable sources due to the cost of the PV systems and thereby making the electricity more expensive. Especially for Turkey, despite its huge potential of solar energy, PV applications are limited to only lower level of MW installations.

To achieve an accurate knowledge of the solar global radiation and its partitioning beam-to-diffuse is very important for the renewable energy sector. Although solar global radiation is frequently measured at most radiometric stations, diffuse radiation measurements are less frequent because the shadow band and sun tracker used to measure it required an economic inversion and a maintenance which is not always possible. In these cases when no measurements of diffuse radiation is available, it must be estimated by means of models. Thus, many authors have developed empirical models that allow the estimation of the diffuse component from different meteorological and radiometric magnitudes. The main objective of this paper is to validate and adapt five empirical models using one-minute data measured at the radiometric station installed in Badajoz (south-west of Spain). Results indicate that all models generally account for the general tendency, being the models proposed by Ruiz-Arias et al. and by Spencer the ones showing the best performance according to the experimental data.

The heavy metal pollution poses a threat to groundwater resources, soils and sub-soils. In contrast to most organic contamination, the metallic elements are not biodegradable and potentially toxic. Clays play a significant role in a wide range of environmental problems, and their applications are increasing steadily, particularly in trapping heavy metals and reducing their toxic effects. In our work we have conducted tests adsorption of chromium on a clay-like bentonite.

The present study is aimed at evaluating the feasibility of renewable energy obtained from biomass for the production of heat and cold at hospitals. In particular, its suitability for application at hospital facilities in the Autonomous Region of Extremadura (Spain) was analyzed. The technical aspects regarding the operation of this type of air conditioning were taken into account, including reliability and maintainability, and the problems associated to the application of renewable energies obtained from biomass in public buildings are also assessed.

Hospital are shown to be suitable facilities for the installation of thermal production systems based on biomass, provided their high rates of hot domestic water consumption as well as the high heating and cooling energy needs. Given the particular features of this type of buildings, amortization would be guaranteed by continuous operation of equipments. In addition, it is enhanced that the promotion of biomass as renewable energy source might help create and consolidate a native biomass market (at emerging stage at beginning of this project and currently at consolidation stage) which will eventually serve to improve economic development in rural areas.

Although the air masses reaching the Iberian Peninsula have been extensively studied, to establish an objective criterion for the classification remains a main problem which is specific for the particular purposes of each study. In the case of being interested in the aerosols transported by the air mass, the interest focuses on the origin of air mass, but also on the flight time and the path along which the air mass has traveled. Due to the difficulty to identify the effective source regions responsible for the aerosols arriving at Cáceres, in this study the air masses were clustered according to their backward trajectories. Daily 500 m above sea level (ASL) 5-day back-trajectories ending in Cáceres (Spain) over 5 years (2005 - 2010) were calculated using HYbrid Single Particle Lagrangian Integrated Trajectory model (HYSPLIT_4). This cluster analysis will identify the most frequent paths and origins for the air masses reaching the station of Cáceres. The cluster analysis used in this study combines two types of methodologies: hierarchical method and non-hierarchical method, so as to take profit from the advantages of each method. Clusters of trajectories have been related with the aerosol optical properties, such as aerosol optical depth and Ångström exponent α, obtained from measurements provided by photometers CIMEL in Cáceres station. Once applied this methodology, three different groups of trajectories were identified: on one side, trajectories coming from the Atlantic and Northern Europe, associated to low turbidity; on the other side, trajectories from continental areas, with a greater turbidity; and finally, Saharan dust events characterized by a remarkably high turbidity and very low Ångström exponent α.

The abusive use of private transport has been a contribution to climate change and the degradation of environmental quality. This study aims to analyze how professors, students and non-teaching staff of the College of Health Technology of Coimbra make their journeys home-school-home to investigate the differences in behavior between these groups and calculate the value emissions of some pollutants (CO, CO₂, NO_x, VOC, PM).
Study was carried out between October 2009 and October 2010, and the period of data collection occurred during May and June 2010. As mentioned, the target population was composed of teachers, non-teaching staff and students of the College of Health Technology of Coimbra. The sample was 33 teachers, 27 non-teaching staff and 169 students. To gather information, a questionnaire about mobility was delivered. This study demonstrated that it is necessary more investment in informing the people about the advantages of public transport and improving the quality of alternatives to the car so that in future the population enjoy more public transport and feel the same convenience, safety and speed of individual transport.

Promoting energy efficiency is a key factor to meet Kyoto Protocol targets. According to this order, it will be needed to take into account the responsibility in consumption energy managment and introducing energy efficiency measures.
In local field, approximately 60% of energy consumption is due to the public street lighting.
Last years Extremenian Energy Agency, as technical consultant on the region of Extremadura has carried out Energy Optimization Plans of Public Street Lighting addressing the problems in these lighting systems.
At present, a pilot project to improve energy efficiency by introducing LED technology in compliance with current regulations is running in a public street lighting in San Francisco de Olivenza, a modest town near the Spanish-Portuguese border and Badajoz (Spain).
The current paper carries out a comparative study between the original and future situation that provides data regarding actual energy savings obtained, verified by the RD 1890/2008 lighting controls. Thus, it will provide the key points for the implementation of public street lighting with LED technology in Portuguese and Extremenian towns.

The state of Ceará is a semiarid region in the north-eastern part of Brazil, with high spatial and temporal variability of precipitation embarrassing water resources management. The objective of this study is to describe and analyze the trend of monthly precipitation indices developed by the CLIVAR Expert Team on Climate Change Detection. Data from 55 weather stations in the state of Ceará from 1974 to 2009 was analysed. In general a decreasing trend in monthly precipitation was observed over almost all the state of Ceará, with a noticeable exception in January. The results point to a tendency for the dry months to become dryer and a decrease in intensity. Monthly maximum daily precipitation is generally increasing in all months and over the all area under study. The spatially varied behaviour should be taken into account when managing water resources for urban and rural supply, as well as dry and irrigated crop production.

A comparison of columnar versus ground-level measurements of aerosol size distribution is presented. Measurements were taken during the SPALI10 (SPAin Lidar Intercomparison 2010) field campaign at Madrid (40.45ºN, 3.73ºW, 663 m asl) from 18 October to 5 November 2010 within the frame of the EARLINET-ASOS project. Monitoring period included aerosol measurements of size distribution as well as chemical composition. Both combined Scanning Mobility Particle Sizer (TSI SMPS 3936) and an Optical Particle Counter (GRIMM 1108) were used for determining aerosol size distribution ranging from 15 nm to 10 μm. Additionally, the column integrated characterization of the atmospheric aerosol was provided by a sun tracking photometer (Cimel CE-318-4) using a methodology based on non-spherical particles. The instrument provides solar extinction measurements at 340, 380, 440, 670, 870 and 1020 nm, and sky radiance measurements at 440, 670, 870 and 1020 nm using the almucantar and principal plane configurations. The sky radiance measurements in conjunction with solar direct irradiance measurements at several wavelengths were used to retrieve the aerosol size distribution. Measurements at ground-level were compared with the columnar estimates using the retrieved scale height values provided by lidar profiles. Relevant features arising from results showed the complex role of aerosol in urban atmospheres.

Fugitive emissions pose problems both for general air quality management as well as for the operational management of the facilities. In harbours, activities such loading, unloading and transport of dusty materials are important sources of particles fugitive emissions. Therefore, there is a growing concern about air quality in these areas as a result of the high impact of the operations on human health and environment.
The aim of this study was to estimate the impact of harbour activities on Air Particulate Matter (APM) levels and composition. This work was based on experimental campaigns carried out in a Portuguese harbour when three types of bulk materials – fertilizer, phosphorite from Syria and phosphorite from Morocco - were handled. High time resolution monitors were installed close to the unloaded area and recorded APM concentrations and meteorological variables. PM_2.5 and PM_2.5-10 were also collected during unloading operations, in polycarbonate filters by Gent samplers. A complete chemical characterization of collected samples was made by the techniques Instrumental Neutron Activation Analysis and Particle Induced X-Ray Emission. Results showed that manipulation of materials during harbour operations resulted in high emissions of particles, especially from the coarse fraction. These emissions were very affected by the granulometry of the handled materials and by the meteorological conditions.

This paper describes the research conducted in order to identify potential CO₂ storage reservoirs in the Setúbal Peninsula, Portugal. The studied area is located in the southern sector of the Lusitanian Basin, the largest Portuguese Mesozoic sedimentary basin. Data from deep geological conditions was collected from oil and gas exploration wells and structural maps of the target geological horizons were processed from seismic reflection profiles. A potential reservoir for CO₂ storage in the Lower Cretaceous was identified and its volume was calculated based on kriging interpolation methods. Net-to-gross ratio and porosities were determined from geological logs. A total CO₂ storage capacity of 42 Mt was estimated. However, the lack of data about the lateral continuity of the seal, the presence of the most important Portuguese groundwater resources at shallower depths and the relatively high earthquake hazard, hinders the studied reservoir from offering the necessary geological conditions for a safe CO₂ storage in the studied area.

This study provides information about nitrogenous (polluted) air masses transported over Évora, in 2010, detected with a ground based UV-Vis Spectrometer installed at the Geophysics Centre of the University of Évora (CGE). The SPATRAM (Spectrometer for Atmospheric Tracers Measurement) performs measurements of the diffused solar radiation through a vertical path in different spectral intervals (200 - 900nm). The application of the DOAS (Differential Optical Absorption Spectroscopy) methodology to the SPATRAM spectral data, allows for the determination of the total columns of the atmospheric compounds presenting absorption features in the analyzed spectral intervals. The joint action of the SPATRAM data and HYSPLIT (HYbrid Single-Particle Lagrangian Integrated Trajectory) maps, allows for the identification of the sources responsible for the pollution events recorded at the Évora Observatory. Using the above methodology 71 days in 2010 with pollution events were found. The potential sources of NO₂ that were identified are mainly in Portugal (Lisbon and Tagus Valley and Sines) but there are also sources in Spain and very few sources in North of Africa. For the days in which pollution events were identified, a quantitative study is also presented where the amount of NO₂ over Évora is determined.

The objective of this paper is to optimize the gas turbine cycle through exergy and exergoeconomic. The optimization procedure is an evolutionary algorithm (i.e. Genetic Algorithm). The optimization program is developed in Matlab Software programming. Therefore; like each optimization problem, the design Parameters of the plant, were chosen as: compressor pressure ratio (r_C), compressor isentropic efficiency (η_C), gas turbine isentropic efficiency (η_GT), combustion chamber inlet temperature (T₃), and turbine inlet temperature (T₅). In order to optimally find the design parameters a thermoeconomic approach has been followed. An objective function, representing the total cost of the plant in terms of dollar per second, was defined as the sum of the operating cost, related to the fuel consumption. Finally, the optimal values of decision variables were obtained by minimizing the objective function using Evolutionary algorithm such as Genetic Algorithm. At the end of this paper the variation of decision variable and exergy destruction of each component were estimated by the variation of fuel cost.

— In rural areas, during the summer, a passive cavity aerosol spectrometer probe PCASP-X was installed to measure number of particles and size distributions. The study focuses on the wildfires registered in the province and their influence onto particle size distributions. The transport of the particles generated by biomass combustion to the sampling site has enabled us to carry out comparative studies of total measurements and non-contaminated measurements. It was found that the number of particles with sizes ranging from 0.2 to 0.7 µm (fine mode) increased more than 500% in measurements influenced by wildfires. A more detailed analysis of this influence was carried out in three different moments: before, during and after the smoke plume crossed the study zone. The results show that the geometric diameter of the fine mode in the measurements affected by a fire decreases with respect to the previous measurements and reaches average values of 0.11 µm. However, when the relative humidity, is high (more than 80%), the aerosol sizes increase 50%. Consequently, we argue that wildfires not only influence the number of particles, with a clear increase in the number of aerosols in the atmosphere, but they also alter their size distributions.

Every year European citizens become victims of devastating fires being especially disastrous for citizens of Southern European countries. Apart from the obvious damages, such as lost lives and burnt properties, fires generate hazardous pollutants that are further introduced into environment, representing serious risks for public health. In that regard, particulate matter (PM) is among the most important pollutants. Thus, this work aims to evaluate the influence of forest fires on levels of particulate matter, considering PM₁₀ and PM_2.5 fractions collected in north of Portugal in 2010. The results showed that 21 424 forest fires occurred in Portugal in 2010. Northern region was the most affected by forest fires with 27% occurrences in Oporto Metropolitan Area. The annual PM₁₀ and PM_2.5 concentrations of the studied area were 25.9 ± 15.5 µg m-3 and 8.4 ± 6.0 µg m-3. The highest levels of both PM fractions were obtained between July and September (31.9 ± 18.1 µg m-3 for PM₁₀ and 9.6 ± 6.0 µg m-3 for PM_2.5), when the majority (81%) of forest fires occurred. PM₁₀ daily limit was exceeded during 16 days (i.e. 4% of the total year days); 63% of exceedances occurred during forest fire season.

In this work, an analysis of radiation fields in cloudy atmospheres, as well as of cloud shape factor is presented based on results obtained from different radiative transfer models. The radiative transfer approaches include a plane-parallel approximation (1D), a three-dimensional radiative transfer model (3D) and an analytical model that has been developed and adjusted by the authors. The irradiances are obtained from simulations with the numerical radiative transfer models, considering only cumulus clouds. Furthermore, a shape factor related to cloud roughness is derived from the combination of the analytical model with the 3D numerical model, considering the same atmospheric conditions for all simulations.

The paper concerns the occurrence of heat waves in Central Europe. Data was collected from five regional weather stations in Budapest, Krakow, Lvov, Prague and Vienna and included records of the average, maximum and minimum daily air temperatures during the period 1991-2006. The authors defined a heat wave as an unbroken period of at least three days with a maximum temperature of more than 30°C. The study demonstrates that the greatest intensity of heat stress is observed during short heat waves that lasted typically for three to four days and whose timing did not coincide at the different stations involved. Indeed, even longer heat waves, characterised by lower temperature values, were not always recorded at all the stations. This was due to the division of the region by mountain ranges, which impeded the flow of hot tropical air into southern Poland and western Ukraine.

Life is directly affected by energy and its consumption. Wind energy is among the world’s most significant and rapidly developing renewable energy resources. Wind energy is one of the renewable energies that have attracted great attention. The objective of this paper is to develop an improved approach for the thermodynamic analysis of wind energy using energy and exergy analysis. Such a formulation can provide a physical basis for understanding, refining and predicting the variations in wind energy calculations. Manjil, one of the wind farms in Iran that generates 25 MW, is studied and energy and exergy analysis is performed. The exergy analysis of the wind energy shows that there are significant differences between energy and exergy analysis results. Thus, the energy and exergy efficiency are presented as a function of wind speed. The results show that output power of wind turbine changes rapidly when the wind speed is less than 15m/s and it does not change after this wind speed.

An Algerian activated mineral carbon (AC) was oxidized with different concentrations of HNO₃. The modifications in the surface chemistry resulting from these treatments have been studied by Boehm titration and FTIR. The results show that the treatments with HNO₃ increase the number of oxygenated groups on the surface of the carbons. The analysis of the adsorption isotherms of N₂, CO₂ and organic molecular probes allows estimating the extension of the two effects caused by these treatments, i.e. partial destruction of the micropores and the introduction of chemical groups that create constrictions at the entrance of the pores. These coals would be perfectly adapted to the treatment of water polluted by polar compounds.

Equilibrium adsorption isotherm for the removal of Methylene Blue (MB) from aqueous solution using modified activated carbons has been investigated. The activated carbon was prepared by physical activation of date pits using CO₂ . The surface chemistry of the activated carbon was modified by appropriate treatments (Oxidation with (NH₄)₂S₂O₈ and heat treatment) in order to obtain two additional samples, with different chemical surface properties. The three carbons have been characterized by adsorption of N₂ (-196°C) and CO2 (0°C). The changes in surface chemistry were studied by temperature programmed decomposition (TPD). Freundlich, Langmuir and Redlich-Peterson equations were tested for modelling the adsorption isotherms at equilibrium. Influence of temperatures of the adsorption of MB onto activated carbons has been considered too. The thermodynamic parameters such as standard enthalpy ∆H°, standard entropy ∆S° and standard free energy ∆G° were evaluated. The adsorption of MB on activated carbons is a spontaneous process.

The observed annual precipitation in the Iberian Peninsula in the period 1961-2006 shows a generalized but non-uniform decrease with variations between 0 and 120 mm per decade. In the context of the ADAPTACLIMA-EPAL project, we are analyzing the long term series of precipitation daily data, performing a characterization of the precipitation regime in the past 40 years, in Tagus hydrological basin. The complete observation series for selected climatological stations are compared with the reanalysis data (ERA-40).

The successful launch of ENVISAT in March 2002 has given a great opportunity to understand the optical changes of water surfaces, including inland waters such as lakes and reservoirs, through the use of the Medium Resolution Imaging Spectrometer (MERIS). The potential of this instrument to describe variations of optically active substances has been examined in the Alqueva reservoir, located in the south of Portugal, where satellite spectral radiances are corrected for the atmospheric effects to obtain surface spectral reflectance. In order to validate these spectral reflectances, several field campaigns were carried out, with a portable spectroradiometer, during the satellite overpasses. The retrieved lake surface spectral reflectance was combined with limnological laboratory data to obtain empirical algorithms and with the resulting equations, spatial maps of biological quantities and turbidity were built up.

A sample of bentonite from Maghnia (N.W. Algeria) was treated with HCl (0,05M; 0,5M and 1M) and characterized by powder X-ray diffraction, FT-IR spectroscopy and elemental analysis. The acid-activated bentonite was employed as adsorbent for Co²⁺ ions from aqueous solutions by mean of batch experiments. The simultaneous effect of treatment, shaking time and pH was studied. The results showed that the effective pH was 5 and the removal efficiency of Co²⁺ by acid-activated bentonite could reach 90-98 %, when the initial concentration of metal ions 10 mg / L and shaking time 20 mn and 60 mn. Two isotherm equations due to Freundlich and Langmuir models were applied to describe equilibrium isotherms for the adsorption of Co²⁺. The sorption kinetics of Co²⁺ have been analysed by Lagergren pseudo-first order and pseudo-second order kinetic models. The experimental results indicated that Algerian clay had significant potential for removing Co²⁺ from wastewater using adsorption method.

The soils play an important role in the CO² capture, a major gas in climatic channel. The goal of this study was to quantify, during the dry season, the organic carbon content of the mangrove wetland located in Hooker Bay, San Andres Island, Colombia. The changes in the concentration of organic matter through soil profile were evaluated. A structural analysis of the mangrove wetland was carried out in order to relate it to the physical-chemical parameters (pH, salinity and dissolved oxygen) and to the organic matter. The mangrove soil studied contains an average of 173,96 kg C/m² in the first top 100cm of depth. There were neither significant differences among the depths evaluated (p < 0,05) nor correlations between the organic matter in the physical-chemical parameters. The mangrove wetland studied has a low structural development. Three species with decreasing IVI (Index Value Importance) were found: Rhizophora mangle > Avicennia germinans > Laguncularia racemosa.
The mangrove soil studied has a high potential as carbon reservoir in the form of organic matter because it is one of the ecosystems that accumulates larger carbon quantities.

Combined cycle power generation is currently the most promising technology to generate power at higher plant efficiencies. In this study a simulation system program is proposed for simulation of pressurized fluidized bed gasification and combustion based combined cycle power generation unit, utilizing turkish lignite as a fuel. The effect of pressure ratio, gas turbine inlet temperature, gasifier carbon conversion and the bottoming steam cycle configuration, on the plant performance, for the unit is investigated. System data of the texaco gasifier and the related plant (coal preparation, air separation unit, circulating fluidized bed, gas cleaning, gas turbine, steam turbine and the heat recovery steam generator) are considered. Net power of the combined cycle increasing with increasing overall pressure ratio. By steps of 5% increase of overall pressure ratio affects the net power, gas turbine power and steam turbine power increases about 0.63%, 7.65% and 0.32%, respectively. Gas turbine inlet temperature is increase from 1150 to 1200ºC, net power output, gas turbine power output and steam turbine power output increases about 1.42%, 4.0% and 0.22%, respectively. Steam turbine pressure is increased between 70 and 110 bar in step of 10bar; net power output increase about 0.90%, gas turbine power output increase also by 0.50% and steam turbine power output increased about 0.25%. Increase of gasifier carbon conversion affects the net power and net electric efficiency about average increase of 0.03% and 0.063%, respectively. In this case, the optimum output work is considered by increasing the pressure ratio, gas turbine inlet pressure, steam turbine (ST1) inlet pressure, HRSG superheated outlet temperature and higher gasifier carbon conversion.

Aqueous alkanolamine solutions have been extensively studied for acid gas removal processes. Research interest has recently shifted towards blends of solutions containing amine groups in search for adequate solvents. In this study, the kinetic rates of absorption of carbon dioxide in aqueous blend of amine solution of N-(2-hydroxyethyl) piperazine, (N-HEPZ) and tris(hydroxymethyl) aminomethane, (AHPD) at 298K (25^oC) were investigated using direct stopped-flow technique in a concentration range of 0.0025 - 0.03kmol/m³ of N-HEPZ with blend of 1kmol/m³ of AHPD. The kinetic rates of absorption of CO₂ in aqueous blend of N-HEPZ and AHPD were not found in open literature, hence they were considered for the present study.
It was found that the reaction follows a single termolecular reaction mechanism. The reaction rate between CO₂ and aqueous blend of N-HEPZ and AHPD at 298 K was 12971 m³/kmol.S. The result obtained was comparable with published reaction rate data of single alkanoamines and other blends of aqueous solutions containing amine groups.
The present study shows that blended aqueous solution of N-HEPZ and AHPD is a potential candidate for consideration as alternative solvent for capture of carbon dioxide from exhaust gases.

This work focused on the study of the types of heavy-metal-resistant anaerobic bacteria from a brewery wastewater treatment plant exposed to high concentrations of dissolved Cd (II), Cu (II) and Zn (II). Characterizations were carried out by polymerase chain reaction of 16S rRNA gene of bacterial strain. Using special culture media, two types of strong heavy metal-resistant bacterial strains were isolated. One is a sulfate reducing bacterium identified as Clostridium ganghwense strain HY-42-06. This strain of sulfate reducing bacteria tolerated Cd (II), Cu (II) and Zn (II) at the tested concentration. The other type was identified as consisting of a mixture of Micrococcus luteus, Wolinella Succinogenes, Sporosarcina sp. PIC-C28 and Alicycliphilus sp. R-24604. The results found that these four dominant strains tolerated Cd (II) at 20 mg/l, only Wolinella Succinogenes cannot tolerate Cu (II) at 2 mg/l while none of them tolerated Zn (II) at 30 mg/l.

The purpose of this study is to elaborate the climatology of extremes indices of rainfall in the Amazon basin. For this purpose, climatic indices (CDD, R95p, RX1day, Rnnmm) recommended by the joint World Meteorological Organization CCL/CLIVAR/JCOMM Expert Team on Climate Change Detection and Indices (ETCCDI) were calculated. One of the most important aspects of this study is to characterize possible change in extreme of rainfall (e.g. floods, drought, etc) over Amazon basin, since these events have strongest impacts on society. Extremes indices were derived from daily precipitation at NOAA´s Climate Prediction Center (CPCp) with resolution 1°x1°, for period 1979-2005. The indices calculated in this study are R50mm and R80mm defined as the number of days per year with precipitation amount ≥ 50 mm and ≥ 80mm respectively. CDD defined as annual maximum number of consecutive dry days and R95p (very wet days exceeding the 95th percentile).These indices can be related to drought (CDD) and floods (R95p) events. The rainfall of Amazon basin exhibits high interannual and interdecadal variability associated with ENSO events and with the positive anomaly of SST in the North Atlantic. The annual variability of extreme precipitation indices, such as, maximum length of dry spells (CDD) and RR> 95p (R95p) were sensitive to identification periods of droughts. Also, it verified that extreme rains ≥ 50mm and ≥ 80 mm (R50mm and R80mm), occur with or without events El Niño. On the other hand, droughts are not necessarily associated with a diminution of extreme rainfall events (R50mm e R80mm). Individual locations in the west of the basin (Santarém, Cachimbo and Manaus stations) show negative trends of CDD. However, Rio Branco station (southeast of basin) showed statistically significant positive trends of CDD, and captured the drought of 2005 and 2010. The future scenarios of ETA_HadCM3 model for the period 2011-2040, show an increase (decrease) of the index CDD (R95p) for the average area of the Amazon basin, and it will be stronger in the 2071-2099 climatology. However, as this result is a projection of model there are still many uncertainties. The fact is that historically these extremes of rain are part of climate variability in the region, and they can happen again.