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Unanue, Wenceslao. "Materialism, personal well-being and environmental behaviour : cross-national and longitudinal evidence from the UK and Chile." Thesis, University of Sussex, 2014. http://sro.sussex.ac.uk/id/eprint/49014/.
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This thesis investigates how materialism is related to personal well-being, as well as to environmental behaviour. I tested key assumptions in the field, both cross-sectionally and longitudinally, in two samples of adults from two different cultures, the UK – an established mass consumer society – and Chile – a fast-growing economy. Results are presented in the form of three papers. Using a cross-sectional analysis, I showed in Paper 1 that materialism was associated with lower levels of well-being in both countries. Importantly, both need satisfaction and need frustration mediated the link between materialism and well-being. Notably, need frustration played an incremental explanatory role, above and beyond the role of need satisfaction. In Paper 2, I explored the hypothesized link between need satisfaction/frustration and well-being in greater depth. Employing a cross-lagged longitudinal design over 3 years, I found that in both countries, higher total need satisfaction (versus frustration) was a significant prospective predictor of higher well-being. However, when separate needs for autonomy, competence and relatedness were distinguished, only relatedness reached statistical significance in the UK, and none of the three needs individually predicted well-being in Chile. In both countries, need satisfaction prospectively predicted positive well-being, and in the UK, need frustration prospectively predicted negative well-being. Finally, I found a bi-directional link between total need satisfaction and subjective well-being in both countries. These results point towards a better integration of research into hedonic and eudaimonic well-being. In Paper 3, I showed, both cross-sectionally and longitudinally, that a higher relative importance placed on extrinsic (versus intrinsic) life goals was a negative antecedent of environmentally responsible behaviour, even while controlling for effects of environmental worldviews and environmental identification. Taken together, these results show the negative effects of materialistic values and life goals in both people's well-being and in the future of our the natural environment.
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Pereira, Maria Odete da Rosa. "PEAS- Programas de educação ambiental no licenciamento uma análise e uma proposta pedagógica para além do capital social." reponame:Repositório Institucional da FURG, 2011. http://repositorio.furg.br/handle/1/2895.
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Tese (doutorado)-Universidade Federal do Rio Grande, Programa de Pós-Graduação em Educação Ambiental, Instituto de Educação, 2011.Submitted by eloisa silva (eloisa1_silva@yahoo.com.br) on 2012-11-30T16:47:56Z No. of bitstreams: 1 mariaodetepereira.pdf: 6090888 bytes, checksum: 75c72cf7535b941bf6dafb7b73310995 (MD5)
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Numa perspectiva do materialismo histórico e dialético, realizamos a análise textual do conjunto de documentos que compõe o processo de licenciamento ambiental os quais propõem e relatam as ações de Educação Ambiental (EA), tal como definidos em sua estrutura na Nota Técnica CGPEG/DILIC/IBAMA no. 01/2010. O objetivo do trabalho foi identificar os elementos teóricos que influenciam a efetivação do trabalho comunitário, suas dificuldades e possibilidades. Nossa inquietação é resultante do ecletismo conceitual que sofrem tais propostas de trabalho, embora haja por parte do órgão licenciador (IBAMA) orientações que apontam o referencial teórico pautado nas diretrizes da educação no processo de gestão ambiental enquanto abordagem formulada e adotada pela referida instituição pública, inspirada na tradição crítica da EA. Nosso trabalho descortina palavras-chave e termos no conjunto textual do processo que se expressam como ícones ou categorias analíticas que por vezes são antagônicas com o aporte teórico da EA transformadora e da teoria crítica que acreditamos apropriada ao trabalho socioambiental, em consonância com o IBAMA. Nosso foco foi explicitar as diferenças, dissensos e antagonismos entre ambos os métodos, bem como apontar as fragilidades de propostas que se baseiam em uma educação comportamental, na psicologia ancorada na autoajuda e possivelmente na teoria comunicativa em detrimento de outras abordagens com centralidade no trabalho, nas ações políticas e na transformação social. As conclusões do estudo apontam para uma metodologia de trabalho ancorada nos movimentos sociais e populares com corte de classe, assim como no compromisso com a organicidade intelectual proposta por Gramsci e a práxis inspirada em Marx e Mészáros, definitivamente descartando o iluminismo e a dicotomia teoria e prática. Por fim, apontamos uma proposta de roteiro de Projeto/Programa de Educação Ambiental (PEA) do ponto de vista do Método (Materialismo histórico e dialético).
From the perspective of dialectical and historical materialism, we conducted a textual analysis of the documents that make up the licensing process which report and propose actions in Environmental Education (EE), as defined in its structure in the Technical Note CGPEG / DILIC / IBAMA no. 01/2010. Our aim was to identify the theoretical elements influencing on the effectiveness of community work, based on its difficulties and possibilities. Our concern was a result of the conceptual eclecticism suffered by such work proposals, although guidanceis given by the licensing agency (IBAMA)which points out the theoretical framework based on the guidelines for education in the process of environmental management as an approach formulated and adopted by that public institution, inspired by the critical tradition of EE. Our study reveals keywords and terms from the textual set of the process which are expressed as icons or analytical categories that are sometimes conflicting with theory of transformative EE and the critical theory that we find appropriate to the socioenvironmental work in line with IBAMA. Our focus was to explain the differences, disagreements, and conflicts between both methods, as well as to point out the weaknesses of proposals that are based on a behavioral education, a psychological approach rooted in self-help, and possibly the communicative theory to the detriment of other approaches concerned with work, political action, and social transformation. The study's findings point to a methodology of work rooted in social and popular movements with class cutting, as well as commitment to the intellectual organicity proposed by Gramsci and the praxis, grounded on Marx and Meszaros, definitely setting aside the Enlightenment and the dichotomy between theory and practice. Finally, we point out a guideline proposal for Environmental Education Projects (AEPs) from the standpoint of the Method by historical and dialectical materialism.
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Agrelius, Felicia. "Materializing Trauma: Ceramic Embodiment, Environmental Violence, and the Colonial Legacies Of Mount Baldy." Scholarship @ Claremont, 2017. http://scholarship.claremont.edu/scripps_theses/1017.
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In this project I argue that trauma is a major component of society. Rather than positioning trauma as an event, I contend that it should be understood as an environmental force. To form this reorientation I look to an actual environment and the ways in which it remembers and responds to systemic violence. Specifically, I track the colonization and exploitation of Mount Baldy, and how natural occurrences such as floods and fires have consistently threatened human development on the mountain. If trauma is both monumentally impactful and an environmental force, then it merits a major rethinking of many of the aspects of human existence that are assumed to be stable. In chapter 1, I move trauma outside of the psychological definitions of the DSM and into a communal and systemic framework. In chapter 2, I use a case study of Mount Baldy to understand how environmental forces react to trauma, which provides a way to imagine how a society or community might collectively operate as a traumatized being. In chapter 3, I undertake a material research process using clay harvested from Mount Baldy. Clay, which mimics characteristics of the human body and is literally a part of the natural environment, connects the embodied nature of trauma for human to the ecological manifestations of trauma. This allows a glimpse at what it might mean to acknowledge trauma as a major component of the human experience.
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Jordi, Richard. "Reconciling humans with nature : using Marx's dialectical materialism to critically explore philosophy and politics in contemporary environmentalism and to develop a perspective on environmental justice." Master's thesis, University of Cape Town, 2000. http://hdl.handle.net/11427/15423.
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Bibliography : leaves 152-161.Nature exists as an objective reality on which human beings rely physically and spiritually. We are part of nature. But throughout human and environmental history 'nature' has also existed as a human idea and cultural construct. We project our values, fears, and aspirations onto our environment so that in nature we see a reflection of our own historical development and social existence. Our different class, cultural, and gender life experiences generate different attitudes towards our natural environment. For the most part we regard the ideas and attitudes towards nature as natural, and not as ideological constructions. Dominant techno centric and ecocentric discourses within contemporary environmentalism unselfcritically regard nature as a commodity and as a moral authority respectively. These alienated and romanticised views of nature reflect our contemporary estrangement from the natural world that we are part of Marx's dialectical materialism provides the analytical tools to critique the human/nature dualism expressed by technocentrism and ecocentrism and offers a more dynamic, historical, and ecological perspective on the changing relations between humans and' their natural environment. As humans we are also apart from nature. We have a unique capacity to stand aside and consciously shape our relation with nature, albeit within the constraints and possibilities offered by ecological processes. How we define that relationship is for the most part determined by our own human economic, social, and political relations. This thesis argues that our contemporary alienation from, and abuse of, nature emerges out of the development of capitalist economic and social relations and the ethic and practice of the private ownership of natural resources. Ironically, it is the most alienated and impoverished sector of human society that offers the most progressive perspective on reconciling humans with nature. The struggles of urban and rural working class and poor communities for environmental justice integrates social, economic, political, and ecological issues in a way that poses a radical challenge to the alienated dualism of mainstream environmentalism. This thesis explores and highlights the progressive possibilities that the 'environmental justice perspective offers in our struggle for social justice and ecological wisdom.
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Taylor, Rebekah Ann. "Anthropocene Modernisms: Ecological Expressions of the "Human Age" in Eliot, Williams, Toomer, and Woolf." Kent State University / OhioLINK, 2016. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=kent1461270901.
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Costa, César Augusto Soares da. "A interdisciplinaridade na produção em educação ambiental: uma leitura ontometodológica à luz do materialismo histórico-dialético." reponame:Repositório Institucional da FURG, 2015. http://repositorio.furg.br/handle/1/6010.
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O objetivo desta pesquisa doutoral foi investigar a interdisciplinaridade na produção acadêmica em Educação Ambiental (EA), a partir de uma perspectiva ontometodológica alicerçada no materialismo histórico-dialético. A tese central considera que as relações entre interdisciplinaridade e educação ambiental, como tem sido refletida pelos autores do campo ambiental, reduz o debate ambiental a fórmula do “projeto em parceria”, sem considerar os axiomas político-ideológicos. O “projeto em parceira”, se constitui numa alternativa para o problema da disciplinaridade, que é discursivamente apresentada na EA como uma patologia a ser superada através de práticas interdisciplinares. Sua viabilização reporta a presença de pesquisadores de diversas áreas como uma necessidade inerente o trabalho interdisciplinar. Assim, partimos da indagação: A contribuição do método dialético marxista é capaz de potencializar a interdisciplinaridade na EA para o enfrentamento do projeto capitalista? O estudo foi desenvolvido a partir de uma pesquisa bibliográfica alicerçada no método dialético marxista. Consideramos que as transformações da sociedade capitalista suscitam desafios à questão interdisciplinar na EA neste contexto de crise ambiental e civilizatória. Logo, compreendemos a interdisciplinaridade e sua relação com a EA confere uma dimensão que está presente no campo curricular e nos documentos das principais Conferências ambientais. Postulamos que as implicações ontometodológicas do materialismo histórico-dialético na pesquisa em EA problematizam a interdisciplinaridade no que tange a compreensão da dialética marxista para a questão ambiental diante do enfrentamento e da transformação da relação sociedade-natureza no atual projeto societário. Em termos metodológicos, os autores analisados foram escolhidos por tais razões: a) devido a sua relevância e contribuição ao campo da pesquisa em EA no Brasil e; b) procuraram sistematizar a questão interdisciplinar em parte de suas obras; c) pelas suas contribuições ao debate epistemológico da EA e, d) suas obras e textos destes constituem no campo da EA referências de investigação para a questão interdisciplinar. Os principais resultados desta tese evidenciam que o desenvolvimento de uma perspectiva dialética e interdisciplinar contempla a apreensão complexa e contraditória do movimento real e da materialidade dos processos educativos em suas relações, disputas, diálogos e conflitos inerentes a contestação ou transformação do projeto societário capitalista. Sustentamos que as discussões da interdisciplinaridade na EA não podem ser dimensionadas pela primazia do “projeto em parceria”, omitindo a dimensão política dos sujeitos envolvidos no processo de compreensão do conhecimento e das relações lotadas de materialidade, conflitos e contradições inerentes a dimensão política. Apontamos para a incorporação das categorias do materialismo histórico-dialético no desenvolvimento da concepção interdisciplinar e em suas relações na EA, onde a categoria totalidade se constitui como um horizonte ontometodológico necessário ao enfrentamento radical do padrão societário atual através de uma EA efetivamente crítica, transformadora e interdisciplinar.
The goal of this doctoral research was to investigate the interdisciplinarity in academic production in Environmental Education (EA), from a perspective ontomethodological grounded in historical materialism-dialectic. The central thesis believes that relations between interdisciplinarity and environmental education, as has been reflected by the authors of the environmental field, reduces the environmental debate the formula of "project in partnership", without considering the axioms political-ideological. The "project in partnership", is an alternative to the problem of interdisciplinarity, which is discursively presented in EA as a pathology to be overcome through interdisciplinary practices. Its viability reports the presence of researchers from several areas as a need inherent in interdisciplinary work. Thus, we assume the inquiry: The contribution of method marxist dialectic is capable of potentiating the interdisciplinarity in EA for facing the capitalist project? The study was developed from a literature search based on method marxist dialectic. We believe that the transformations of capitalist society pose challenges to interdisciplinary issue in EA in this context of environmental crisis and civilization. As soon as we understand the interdisciplinary nature and its relationship with the EA gives a dimension that is present in the field curriculum and in documents of major environmental Conferences. We postulate that the implications ontomethodological of historical materialism-dialectic in research in EA problematize the interdisciplinarity in terms understanding the marxist dialectic to the environmental issue they face and the processing of society-nature in the current corporate design. In methodological terms, the authors analyzed were chosen for these reasons: a) due to their relevance and contribution to the field of research in Brazil and; (b) sought to systematize the interdisciplinary issue in part of their works; (c) for their contributions to the debate epistemological in EA and (d) their works and texts of these are in the field of EA references research for the interdisciplinary issue. The main results of this thesis show that the development of a dialectical perspective and interdisciplinary contemplates the seizure complex and contradictory movement of real and the materiality of educational processes in their relations, disputes, dialogs and conflicts inherent in the contestation or processing of project corporate capitalism. We argue that the discussions of interdisciplinarity in the area may not be sized for the primacy of "project in partnership", omitting the political dimension of the subjects involved in the process of understanding the knowledge and relations crowded materiality, conflicts and contradictions inherent in the political dimension. We pointed to the incorporation of the categories of historical materialism-dialectic in the development of interdisciplinary approach and in its relations to the AREA, where the whole class is as a horizon ontomethodological necessary to cope with the radical corporate standard current through a EA actually critical, manufacturing and interdisciplinary.
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Bower, Matthew S. "Catastrophe in Permanence: Benjamin's Natural History of Environmental Crisis." Thesis, University of North Texas, 2017. https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc984263/.
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Walter Benjamin warned in 1940 of a certain inconspicuous threat to political thinking, not least of all to materialism, that takes progress as an historical norm. Implicit in this conception is what he describes as an empty continuum of time along which the prevailing tradition chronicles its own mythic development and drains everyday life of genuine historical experience. The myth of progressive history advances insidiously today in consumeristic and technocratic attempts at reconciling cultural imagery with organic nature. In this dissertation, I pursue the contradictions of such images as they crystallize around the natural history of twenty-first century commodity society, where promises of ecological remediation, sustainable urban development, and climate change mitigation have yet to introduce a true crisis of historical experience to the ongoing environmental crisis of capitalism. A more radical way of seeing the cultural representation of nature would, I argue, penetrate its mythic determination by market forces and bear witness to the natural-historical ruins and traces that constitute, in Benjamin's terms, a single "catastrophe" where others perceive historical continuity. I argue that Benjamin's critique of progress is instructive to interpreting those utopian dreams, ablaze in consumer life and technological fantasy, that recent decades of growing environmental concern have channeled into the recovery of an experience of the natural world. His dialectics of nature and alienated history confront the wish-image of organic abundance with the transience of its appropriated expression in the commodity-form. Drawing together this confrontation with a varied literature on collective memory, nature, and the city, I suggest that our poverty of experience is more than simply a technical, economic, or even ecological problem, but rather follows from the commodification of history itself. The goal of this work is to reflect upon the potentiality of communal politics that subsist not in rushing headlong into a progressive future but, as Benjamin urges, in reaching for the emergency brake on the runaway train of progress.
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Hurth, Victoria Mary Francis. "Factors influencing environmentally-significant consumption by higher-income households : a multi-method study of South Devon for social marketing application." Thesis, University of Exeter, 2012. http://hdl.handle.net/10036/4025.
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The aim of this thesis is to identify and examine the factors influencing environmentally-significant consumption (ESC) by higher-income households (HIH) to provide theoretical and social marketing insights. Income is highly related to levels of energy consumption and associated environmental damage, but despite research documenting the links between income and energy use, there is a lack of enquiry into what shapes the ESC patterns of HIH and therefore how behavioural interventions might be best fashioned to reduce energy use. A postmodern approach to consumption that recognises the interplay between the psychological, the social and the cultural (a psycho-socio-cultural approach), indicates that ESC is not an automatic consequence of wealth but rather mediated through the way consumption practices are symbolically connected with the satisfaction of underlying needs, including the need for identity and other psychological orientations. These connections are not universal or static but socially and culturally contextual and influenced by many factors, particularly marketing. Social marketing, as marketing for social good, therefore has a critical role to play in altering these symbolic connections and therefore consumption behaviour. To design and market alternative lower energy consumption through social marketing interventions, an understanding of how environmentally-significant consumption is connected with modes of need satisfaction and psychological orientations is necessary. Additionally, an understanding of constraints to even higher levels of consumption is useful. This study provides initial research momentum, using a HIH sample from South Devon. Primary data from a quantitative questionnaire was supported in design by qualitative interviews. These provide descriptive and correlational results about what shapes the consumption of; leisure flights, large-engine cars and new durable products, as well as the role of environmentally-significant psychological orientations, specifically: values; materialism; environmental concern and identity. The research also provides a comparative analysis between a group of HIH who have participated in Global Action Plan’s EcoTeam programme, and the general sample of HIH.
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Moyer, Jessica. "Materialism as morality in the ANWR oil drilling debate : a critical investigation into the reification of science, the marginalization of values, and the power of discourse within environmental conflict." Thesis, Queen Margaret University, 2014. https://eresearch.qmu.ac.uk/handle/20.500.12289/7353.
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Modern science is well established as the institution through which knowledge is legitimated, facts are produced, and credibility is assigned. Operating within the prevailing capitalist socio-political order, science is also controlled by the wealthy elite, whose resources are required for its production, evaluation, and implementation. Beyond disproportionately serving powerful interests, however, science enables the most privileged groups within society to embolden certain understandings of the world and marginalize others, to shape public perceptions, behaviors, and norms, and thus to reinforce the existing social systems and institutions that support their own dominance. Building on critical scholarship that addresses inequality by problematizing the structures and practices that reproduce power, this thesis examines the prominent and politically opposed positions of the oil industry and mainstream environmentalists in the U.S. policy debate over whether to permit petroleum development in Alaska’s Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR). Specifically, through Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA), I explore how these two ‘mid-stream’ scientific actors, which have effectively appropriated the wider ‘for’ and ‘against’ drilling campaigns respectively, each engage with the generation as well as dissemination of technical knowledge in order to substantiate their arguments and enhance the authority of their claims. The analysis presented here demonstrates that the hegemonic framing of the ANWR conflict, which I describe in terms of Materialism as Morality, reifies scientific expertise whilst burying values beneath assumptions of objectivity and neutrality. It also allows incongruent truth claims to eclipse the many legitimate but competing perspectives, priorities, investments, ideologies, risks, and ethical dilemmas that lie at the heart of the ANWR drilling debate. Moreover, this framing is implicit in the perpetuation of systemic social and environmental injustice. Ultimately, my research argues for a transformative politics that engages all stakeholders in the negotiation of competing interests, the discussion of social values, and the production of scientific knowledge; and above all, which recognizes the interconnectivity of all three.
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Zimmermann, Lena, and Sibylle Simon. "How can connections between eco-masculinities and a degrowth mindset be understood? : Exploring an ecovillage to find out." Thesis, Uppsala universitet, Företagsekonomiska institutionen, 2020. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:uu:diva-413817.
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This thesis draws upon the young theory of eco-masculinities and the aspiring movement of economic degrowth. We find the concept of eco-masculinities to be an underrepresented complement to the movement of ecofeminism. Studies show that masculine people are less involved in sustainability-related issues in conventional society. We identified this phenomenon as the ‘eco gender characteristics gap’. In the following pages, we elaborate what eco-masculinities can look like at an ecovillage and where we can see possible connections between eco-masculinities and a degrowth mindset. We do so by analysing qualitative data derived from observations of, interviews with and a questionnaire filled out by people living in ecovillages. At an ecovillage, it seems that awareness about feelings and emotions as well as communicating them are highly valued. Our analysis shows that these factors form crucial parts of precepts for eco-masculinities to develop. Connected to degrowth, we can see that eco-masculinities have to be actively implemented and are not automatically attained by living in an alternative setting. We hope that our gained insights contribute to gender characteristics research and to the understanding and acceptance of diverse eco-masculinities in society.Due to COVID-19, the presentation was held online in a Zoom meeting.
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Lostoski, Leanna J. "The Ecological Temporalities of Things in James Joyce's Ulysses and Virginia Woolf's To the Lighthouse and Between the Acts." Kent State University / OhioLINK, 2016. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=kent1461258067.
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May, Talitha. "Writing the Apocalypse: Pedagogy at the End of the World." Ohio University / OhioLINK, 2018. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ohiou1520349189022125.
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Elliott, Lewis Roland. "Physical activity in natural environments : importance of environmental quality, landscape type and promotional materials." Thesis, University of Exeter, 2016. http://hdl.handle.net/10871/22411.
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Physical inactivity and disconnection from natural environments threatens human health. However, research has demonstrated that natural environments potentially support health-enhancing physical activity which could confer greater physical and mental health benefits than physical activity in other types of environment. This thesis approached the study of physical activity in natural environments through three related pieces of research. Firstly, an experimental study was carried out to explore how the presence of litter in beach environments affected psychophysiological responses to exercise. Responses to exercise did not differ in littered and clean conditions but there was evidence that order effects influenced findings. Visual attention to the two scenes differed, but did not mediate differences in psychophysiological responses. Secondly, analysis of a national dataset was undertaken to explore the form and quantity of physical activity conducted within natural environments in England. A series of linear regressions revealed that higher-intensity physical activities occurred in countryside environments, but more total energy expenditure occurred in coastal environments. Thirdly, a quantitative content analysis of brochures which promote recreational walking in natural environments was conducted which investigated their use of persuasive behavioural messages. These brochures omitted behavioural techniques which may be effective at motivating inactive individuals to walk. Extending this, an online survey tested whether improving brochure content heightened intentions to walk in natural environments. By designing content based on the theory of planned behaviour, the intentions of inactive individuals to undertake walking in natural environments were increased. The findings from this thesis demonstrate that the protection of natural environments is vital for preserving and promoting active recreation and could contribute to population-level increases in physical activity with theory-based promotion in the future.
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Shvadlenko, Irina. "Evaluation of Environmental Education Software “Protecting Your Environment”." Ohio University / OhioLINK, 2004. http://www.ohiolink.edu/etd/view.cgi?ohiou1108407292.
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El-Turki, Adel Abdulrazag. "Environmental degradation of construction materials." Thesis, University of Bristol, 2000. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.310656.
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Lidelöw, Sofia. "Environmental assessment of secondary construction materials /." Luleå, 2004. http://epubl.luth.se/1402-1757/2004/65.
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Omonmhenle, Selina Ilunakan. "Clay derived materials for environmental management." Thesis, University of Birmingham, 2014. http://etheses.bham.ac.uk//id/eprint/5332/.
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Hydrotalcite-like compounds with Mg\(^2\)\(^+\)/Al\(^3\)\(^+\) and Zn\(^2\)\(^+\)/Al\(^3\)\(^+\) cations in the layer at different mole ratios with different anions in the galleries were synthesised in this study. The materials have been characterised by a range of techniques. The influence of layer cations, and interlayer anions, which in turn influences the crystallinity, can affect the properties of the hydrotalcites. Dodecylsulfate (DS) and dodecylbenzenesulfonate (DBS) anions were intercalated successfully into the galleries and characterisation studies by the same technique that were used for the parent hydrotalcites show that the hydrotalcites structure was maintained and the interlayer space expanded, suggesting that intercalation of other organic compounds may be possible. The intercalated dodecylsulfate and dodecylbenzenesulfonate anions arranged themselves in monolayer and bilayer configuration in the interlayer. These modified hydrotalcites have well-ordered layered structures, divalent/trivalent mole ratios that are close to those of the host precursors, and hydrophobic properties. SEM images show that the modification led to many of the particles being broken down into smaller pieces due to thermal pre-treatment and regeneration with organic anions, but overall morphology was maintained as the host. They show thermal transitions that are comparable to the host, exhibiting three decomposition steps but with increase in the temperature at which weight losses are completed. They show capacity to uptake phenol and 2-chlorophenol (2-CP) from aqueous solution with the compounds containing DBS anions showing higher sorption capacities for 2-CP than the corresponding DS-containing compounds. A pseudo second order reaction best described the sorption process.
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Lidelöw, Sofia. "Environmental assessment of secondary construction materials." Licentiate thesis, Luleå tekniska universitet, Institutionen för samhällsbyggnad och naturresurser, 2004. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:ltu:diva-26261.
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Process industry, construction and other comparable activities produce large quantities of waste with potential use in geotechnical applications. Prior to utilisation, an acceptably low risk of contamination to humans and the environment must be demonstrated. This work focuses on the identification and evaluation of critical factors for environmental assessments of secondary construction materials. The market potential and the main barriers for usage of industrial wastes were analysed and showed a good potential especially in urban areas. The main obstacle is the long and complicated permit process involved. Further, the lack of a general procedure to investigate the suitability of intended usage leads to inconsistent assessments. An evaluation of leachate emissions from a large-scale test road demonstrated the importance of construction design and site-specific field conditions on the potential environmental impacts. It was also shown that pollutant concentrations in leachate from secondary construction materials tend to become comparable, or for some pollutants, even lower than from rock materials. Different assessment methods and criteria to judge the acceptability of an intended use were reviewed and various methods were identified. However, a generic method to evaluate materials under various environmental conditions is lacking.Godkänd; 2004; 20070109 (mlk)
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Broderick, Jane Tingle. "Documentation, Materials, & Environment." Digital Commons @ East Tennessee State University, 2006. https://dc.etsu.edu/etsu-works/4243.
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Skipworth, Carnetta. "Teachers' Resource for Materials and Environmental Chemistry." TopSCHOLAR®, 2003. http://digitalcommons.wku.edu/theses/568.
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In many secondary education chemistry classrooms, teachers have a difficult time introducing chemistry topics in a way that will be interesting to the high school student. The development of a materials and environmental chemistry teacher's manual will help teachers introduce a variety of selected topics in an interesting fashion to the students. This manual focuses on the subjects covered for freshman and sophomore level students. The manual uses five separate experiments to introduce topics such as the electromagnetic spectrum and solubility. The five experiments include a test on tennis shoe stiffness and energy dissipation ability, pesticides in water, grease in vent hoods, concentration of salicin in willow, and a paint adhering test on a vehicle bumper. The manual introduces several chemistry concepts by relating the subject to projects that the students can understand because they are useful to society and the environment. By presenting the material in this manner, students should be able to focus on the specific concepts longer, thus understanding the concepts better. Some of the lessons cover a topic that is required by the American Chemical Society (ACS) for postsecondary education materials chemistry classes. The inclusion of these topics will increase the knowledge of future chemistry students in an area that will be required at multiple postsecondary education institutions. Each experiment topic includes background information, teacher information, lesson objectives, ACS topic and/or experimental subject covered, lesson, definitions, supplements, transparencies, and a worksheet.
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Kirkland, David R. (David Roger). "Environmental impact of various kayak core materials." Thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2007. http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/45815.
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Thesis (S.B.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Mechanical Engineering, 2008.Includes bibliographical references (p. 26).
This thesis compares the environmental impact of fiberglass, Kevlar, carbon fiber, and cork. A kayak company is interested in using cork as a core material, and would like to claim that it is the most environmentally friendly of the four materials listed above. The efficacy of that claim is evaluated by modeling the manufacturing process, generating an input - output model and performing an exergy analysis. The environmental impact of kayak core material construction on the over impact of kayak construction is nominal. Beyond that, the comparison of core materials results in a qualitative ranking from least to most impact, which is fiberglass, cork, carbon fiber then Kevlar. The diversity of impact, from noxious gases, energy use, volatile liquids, land use and toxic wastes necessitates a qualitative analysis when full exergy data wasn't available. Because of this, the comparison was quantitatively based on the energy use and qualitatively based on each chemicals material safety data.
by David R. Kirkland.
S.B.
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Lidelöw, Sofia. "Environmental assessment of construction with recycled materials." Doctoral thesis, Luleå, 2008. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:ltu:diva-26269.
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The use of industrial residues as raw materials in construction raises concerns over the potential leaching and dispersal of hazardous constituents from them into the environment. Their leaching behaviour has been studied in laboratory assays, but leaching processes in the field over larger spatial and temporal scales are more complex due to variations in the conditions the materials are exposed to, and less well understood. Hence, estimates of the potential environmental loads associated with the use of such materials based on laboratory tests may be inaccurate. This thesis addresses the environmental implications of using recycled materials in road and landfill cover constructions. The focus is primarily on the leaching of inorganic constituents from six types of materials: incineration ashes, copper smelter slag, blast-furnace slag, recycled concrete, natural rock and contaminated soil. The leaching behaviour of constituents from these materials were assessed in both laboratory batch leaching tests and monitoring programs in which the water percolating through them in field applications were sampled over one to ten years. Leaching data were evaluated using statistical and geochemical modelling. In addition, assessment methods and criteria to judge the environmental suitability of substituting natural materials for recycled materials in construction were reviewed. It was found that leachates from recycled materials in the constructions contain higher concentrations of several constituents than natural water and leachates from conventional materials. However, the rates and extent of constituent leaching were affected by the application methods in various ways that are explored and discussed. The results of simplified leaching tests did not always reflect the leaching behaviour in the field, which highlight the importance of developing assessment methods that allow case-specific factors to be taken into account. The environmental impacts of leaching must also be considered in relation to the expected impacts of the default alternative, i.e. landfilling of industrial residues and exploitation of natural resources. Combinations of case-specific assessments and system analyses would be the ideal approaches to evaluate impacts at both local and regional scales.Användningen av industriella restprodukter som konstruktionsmaterial inom anläggningsbyggande väcker frågan om möjlig utlakning och spridning av förorenande ämnen från materialen till omgivande miljö. Materialens lakningspotential bestäms vanligen genom lakförsök utförda under kontrollerade förhållanden i laboratorium. Lakningsprocesser i fält sker dock över större rums- och tidskalor och är mer komplexa på grund av variationer i miljön som materialen exponeras för. Uppskattningar av materialens möjliga miljöpåverkan baserade på laboratorietester kan därför vara felaktiga. Den här avhandlingen handlar om den miljömässiga betydelsen av att använda återvunna material som konstruktionsmaterial i vägar och deponisluttäckningar. Fokus är i huvudsak på utlakningen av oorganiska ämnen från sex typer av material: förbränningsaskor, kopparslagg, hyttsten, återvunnen betong, naturligt berg och förorenad jord. Utlakningen från dessa material undersöktes med hjälp av både skakförsök i laboratorium och kontrollprogram där vatten som perkolerade materialen i fältapplikationer (sk. lakvatten) provtogs under ett till tio år. Lakvattendata utvärderades med hjälp av statistisk och geokemisk modellering. Dessutom granskades olika bedömningsmetoder och kriterier som kan användas för att bedöma den miljömässiga lämpligheten av att använda återvunna istället för naturliga material i anläggningskonstruktioner. Lakvatten från återvunna material i de undersökta konstruktionerna innehöll högre koncentrationer av flera ämnen än naturliga vatten och lakvatten från naturliga material. Dock var hastigheten och omfattningen av utlakningen beroende av hur materialet användes, vilket har undersökts och diskuteras i avhandlingen. Resultaten från förenklade skakförsök överensstämde inte alltid med observationerna i fält, vilket understryker vikten av att utveckla bedömningsmetoder där fallspecifika faktorer kan tas i beaktande. Miljöpåverkan orsakad av lakning måste också ses i relation till den påverkan som kan uppstå om restprodukterna istället deponeras och naturliga material exploateras. Kombinationer av fallspecifika och systemövergripande analyser skulle därför vara det ideala sättet att utvärdera både lokala och regionala effekter av en möjlig användning av återvunna material.
Godkänd; 2008; 20081003 (ysko)
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Ghosh, Abhijeet. "Realistic materials and illumination environments." Thesis, University of British Columbia, 2007. http://hdl.handle.net/2429/31311.
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Throughout its history, the field of computer graphics has been striving towards increased realism. This goal has traditionally been described by the notion of photo-realism, and more recently and in many cases the more ambitious goal of perceptual realism. Photo-realistic image synthesis involves many algorithms describing the phenomena of light transport in a scene as well as its interaction with various materials. On the other hand, research in perceptual realism typically involves various tone mapping algorithms for display devices as well as algorithms that mimic the natural response of the human visual system in order to recreate the visual experience of a real scene. An important aspect of realistic rendering is the accurate modeling of the scene elements such as light sources and material reflectance properties. This dissertation proposes a set of new techniques for efficient acquisition of material properties as well as new algorithms for high quality rendering with acquired data. Here, we are mostly concerned with the acquisition and rendering of local illumination effects. In particular, we propose a new optical setup for efficient acquisition of the bidirectional reflectance distribution function (BRDF) with basis illumination and various Monte Carlo strategies for efficient sampling of direct illumination. The dissertation also looks into the display end of the image synthesis pipeline and proposes algorithms for displaying scenes on high dynamic range (HDR) displays for visual realism, and for tying the room illumination with the viewing environment for a sense of presence and immersion in a virtual environment. Here, we develop real-time rendering algorithms for driving the HDR displays as well as for active control of room illumination based on dynamic scene content. Thus, we propose contributions to the acquisition, rendering, and display end of the image synthesis pipeline while targeting real-time rendering applications, as well as high quality off-line rendering with realistic materials and illumination environments.Science, Faculty of
Computer Science, Department of
Graduate
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Lönnroth, Emma-Christin. "Dental restorative materials from a work environmental perspective." Doctoral thesis, Luleå, 1999. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:ltu:diva-25680.
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The main occupational health hazard for dental personnel is muscle-skeletal problem, followed by symptoms caused by exposure to chemicals. Clinical dental work includes exposure to a number of products like soap, detergents, disinfectants, amalgam, mono- and oligomers, catalysts, inhibitors, solvents and adhesives. Some are chemically very active. The aims of this thesis have been to survey the occurrence of symptoms from skin, eyes and respiratory tract among dental personnel working in general dental practice. Further, to analyse the use of personnel protective devises and, if needed develop ergonomic recommendations for safe use. An additional aim was to evaluate the irritation potential to skin and eyes of some different polymer products using HET-CAM technique. The thesis is based on three questionnaire studies, one observation study and one biological testing. Results showed that information to dental personnel on classification and handling of amalgam and amalgam contaminated waste products is far from sufficient. Further one fifth of both dentists and chair assistants experienced a number of hypersensitive reactions when handling dental polymer products. Dentists, working in general dental practice, reported a significantly higher prevalence of allergic conjunctivitis, atopic dermatitis, and hand dermatitis, than chair assistants and referents. A majority of dental personnel used protective devices (except dental safety glasses) but obviously the protection is not sufficient. Hand dermatitis was significantly more prevalent in some counties, based on the national study (7384 respondents). Based on theoretical and practical information collected in the observation study, four ergonomic checkpoints were developed. Each checkpoint indicated an action, and additionally "why", "how", "some hints" and "remember" with short explanation. All liquids of the different type of polymer materials tested were strongly irritants in the biological testing, but none of the extracts from cured, or freshly mixed non-cured products. This study indicates that patients are exposed to materials with lower irritation potential than dental personnel who handle the non-cured products manually are. This highlights the importance of learning how to handle dental polymer materials, especially the liquids, in a safe manner.Godkänd; 1999; 20061117 (haneit)
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Katsumi, Takeshi. "Utilization of Waste Materials from Environmental Geotechnical Aspects." Kyoto University, 1996. http://hdl.handle.net/2433/77842.
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Demertzi, Martha. "Environmental product declaration: a study of construction materials." Master's thesis, Universidade de Aveiro, 2012. http://hdl.handle.net/10773/9506.
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Mestrado em Estudos AmbientaisNowadays, the protection of the environment is getting more and more important both for the manufacturers and the consumers. There is a strong awareness in terms of environmental issues, discussions on this subject, questions about the role of citizens in this context and a turn towards a more aware way of consumption and a preference to environmental friendly products manufactured and marketed. This means that purchasing decisions have to be influenced by increasing environmental awareness and sustainable consumption by consumers. That also encourages companies to adopt an environmental orientation in their business strategies. As part of this growing environmental awareness, there is the need for clarification of concepts and the establishment of objective criteria, data collection, calculation methodology and objectives to justify the choice of materials used in the construction sector in order to optimize and to increase the sense of responsibility. The first part of the thesis presents and explains several concepts, methodologies and regulations that historically evolved and led to the present documents needed for the proof of the environmental impact of a product. These documents are called Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs). In this work is highlighted the importance of the EPDs, the standardization of criteria, the whole process of organization of an EPD to the stage of evaluation and publication and indicates all regulatory framework. After the explanation of the basic concepts, a case study on ceramic tiles is presented. In this part, the objective is to analyze the information that EPDs provide, how the values they provide can be read, the differences in the procedures used and finally the way that EPDs could help the construction industry. For this purpose, two official EPDs from different EPD systems (Catalonia and Germany) and one Portuguese study (unofficial EPD) are analyzed. At the end of this work it is concluded that EPDs are an essential tool of a product’s environmental information, which comes in response to environmental demands that the market gradually has imposed. Each organization must comply with regulatory procedures and establish procedures for the manufacturing of a product and its whole life cycle that are responsible and environmental friendly.
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Reynolds, Tom George 1972. "Accelerated tests of environmental degradation in composite materials." Thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 1998. http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/28202.
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Thesis (S.M.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Aeronautics and Astronautics, 1998.Includes bibliographical references (leaves 143-147).
High temperature polymer matrix composites are key candidates for the structural components of proposed supersonic transport aircraft. The operational environment of these vehicles exposes the airframe to harsh conditions, including temperature extremes and moisture. These environments have been seen to cause visible damage in polymer matrix composites in timescales much less than the lifetime of the vehicle. Therefore, there is an urgent requirement for accelerated testing of the key components of the environment. A first step to this goal is to identify the components of the environment responsible for the damage. The effects of a realistic moisture and thermal environment on two high temperature polymer matrix composites (PETI-5 and PIXA-M) have been investigated in this work. An extensive test program was developed to test the response of the materials to this baseline environment and its individual components: time at moisture, moisture cycling, time at temperature and thermal cycling. Mechanism-based models were used to design accelerated moisture cycles and accelerated thermal cycles in an attempt to speed up the response to these environmental factors. These accelerated cycles were also used in the test program. The results showed visible damage in the form of cracking in both retrials. The PIXA-M material was found to show more damage than the PETI-5. Cracking was confined to a thin layer of material next to the exposed edge. This suggests that the environmental exposure is reducing the effective fracture toughness of the material in this layer more than in the interior. Analysis suggests that this layer is exposed to more of the environmental components and fluctuations than the material in the interior. The individual components of time at moisture and thermal cycling were seen to cause cracking, while time at temperature did not, and moisture cycling did not appear to accelerate moisture damage. The combined environments in the baseline cycle caused more damage than any one component of the cycle on its own. Evidence points to the combined effects of time at moisture and thermal cycling as being the dominant parameters causing damage, while moisture cycling controls the extent of the damaged region. Although the designed accelerated cycles were not successful in accelerating the damage from the baseline cycle, they were instrumental in establishing what were the dominant parameters. It is suggested that a promising way of accelerating the damage observed under the realistic conditions is by combining an iso moisture environment with a cyclical stress environment, which can be achieved either thermally or mechanically.
by Tom George Reynolds.
S.M.
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Popadyuk, Andriy. "Design of Polymer Materials with Lower Environmental Impact." Diss., North Dakota State University, 2015. http://hdl.handle.net/10365/25161.
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In today’s world of emerging advanced materials, environmental impact of new technologies, as well as already well-established products, is of utmost importance. Environmental safety is as crucial as performance/price ratio for new materials. Talking specifically about polymer materials, research efforts are dedicated to enhancing material biodegradability, sustainability, manufacturing process improvements etc. It starts to become an industrial standard – to eliminate solvents from polymer production routines, reduce number of chemicals, increase biobased content and generally move towards “green synthesis” concept (use of renewable and/or reclaimed resources throughout whole production process). The main goal of this work was to develop novel polymers and polymer materials to have potentially lower environmental impact, including new biobased polymer materials with properties and performance not sacrificed by the presence of renewable content, and demonstrate the feasibility of new polymers in industrial applications. For the purpose of achieving the goal of this work, several approaches were attempted. The first approach lies in the development of a new polymer - poly[n-(tert-butylperoxymethyl) acrylamide-co-maleic anhydride], which combines the features of both initiator and surfactant (the inisurf), to be applied in conventional emulsion polymerization. Use of the inisurf allows for synthesis of novel, in-situ functionalized (peroxidized) latex particles, while reducing the number of chemicals involved in the process. Another focus of this work was on the development of biobased polymer materials, from plant oils as a raw source, which would be used to substitute petroleum-based polymers. For this, soybean based polymer surfactants (amphiphylic copolymers) were synthesized, and their potential to be applied as surfactant ingredients in shampoos was evaluated. In addition, synthesis of novel biobased monomers from sebacic (castor oil) and caprylic (coconut, palm oils) fatty acids – dipropylene glycol acrylate caprylate and dipropylene glycol diacrylate sebacate is presented. Both monomers are shown to be applicable for development of thermosensitive latex particles for controlled encapsulation and release of fragrance in cosmetic products. Finally, a synthetic route for the fabrication of new soybean oil based acrylic monomer for free radical polymerization for making latexes for paints and adhesives is disclosed.North Dakota Soybean Council
United Soybean Board
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Davies, Gareth Benjamin Harverd. "Environmental packaging." Thesis, Brunel University, 2006. http://bura.brunel.ac.uk/handle/2438/5340.
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The food packaging industry is a £300bn global industry growing at a rate of 12% per year and increasingly favouring polymer or polymer-based materials. This generates 58m tonnes of "plastic" packaging waste annually in the EU and poses significant challenges for management given existing legislative constraints and increasing concerns surrounding the environmental impacts. The government, consumers, food retailers and pressure groups are all driving the demand for biodegradable packaging from renewable resources that can be disposed of with reduced impacts to the environment. Green Peace has devised a pyramid classification system of "Poisonous Plastics", which ranks plastics in terms of their harmfulness to the environment. They are campaigning against the use of oil-based materials and advocating the take up of biodegradable materials. The market for biodegradable food packaging is expanding rapidly but is still in its early stages of development and has not reached a critical mass to achieve significant market penetration. This is predominantly due to a lack of suitable materials that meet all environmental, functional and economical requirements. Whilst the long-term solution requires continued efforts in materials research and development, in the shorter term, changing working practices can abate the environmental impact of the industry. This research project tackled the challenge of environmental packaging from several directions: A novel starch-based material was developed that would fill the current gap in the food packaging market and facilitate recovery of the used materials by home composting. Using the sponsoring organisation as a case study, it was proved that by changing working practices by increasing rework and re-processing waste material for use in lower grade applications, both manufacturing costs and environmental impact can be reduced, thus benefiting both industry and the environment. A Life Cycle Assessment of selected biopolymers and oil-based polymers confirmed Green Peace's damning view of PVC and highlighted the need to develop biopolymers further. A domestic composting study of a range of commercially available "biodegradable" polymer materials revealed that a number of biodegradable packaging materials may typically biodegrade well in industrial high-temperature composting systems but fail to biodegrade under a low-temperature home composting environment and thus alerted the potential pitfall in waste management of some biodegradable polymers.
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WHITLOCK, PATRICK W. "SILICON-BASED MATERIALS IN BIOLOGICAL ENVIRONMENTS." University of Cincinnati / OhioLINK, 2005. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ucin1116264213.
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Gonzalez, Lucena Fedora. "Mineral Magnetism of Environmental Reference Materials: Iron Oxyhydroxide Nanoparticles." Thesis, Université d'Ottawa / University of Ottawa, 2010. http://hdl.handle.net/10393/19608.
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Iron oxyhydroxides are ubiquitous in surface environments, playing a key role in many biogeochemical processes. Their characterization is made challenging by their nanophase nature. Magnetometry serves as a sensitive non-destructive characterization technique that can elucidate intrinsic physical properties, taking advantage of the superparamagnetic behaviour that nanoparticles may exhibit. In this work, synthetic analogues of common iron oxyhydroxide minerals (ferrihydrite, goethite, lepidocrocite, schwertmannite and akaganéite) are characterized using DC and AC magnetometry (cryogenic, room temperature), along with complementary analyses from Mössbauer spectroscopy (cryogenic, room temperature), powder X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy. It was found that all of the iron oxyhydroxide mineral nanoparticles, including lepidocrocite, schwertmannite and akaganéite were superparamagnetic and therefore magnetically ordered at room temperature. Previous estimates of Néel temperatures for these three minerals are relatively low and are understood as misinterpreted magnetic blocking temperatures. This has important implications in environmental geoscience due to this mineral group’s potential as magnetic remanence carriers. Analysis of the data enabled the extraction of the intrinsic physical parameters of the nanoparticles, including magnetic sizes. The study also showed the possible effect on these parameters of crystal-chemical variations, due to elemental structural incorporation, providing a nanoscale mineralogical characterization of these iron oxyhydroxides. The analysis of the intrinsic parameters showed that all of the iron oxyhydroxide mineral nanoparticles considered here have a common magnetic moment formation mechanism associated with a random spatial distribution of
iv
uncompensated magnetic spins, and with different degrees of structural disorder and compositional stoichiometry variability, which give rise to relatively large intrinsic magnetization values. The elucidation of the magnetic nanostructure also contributes to the study of the surface region of the nanoparticles, which affects the particles’ reactivity in the environment.
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Rückold, Stephan [Verfasser]. "Water in Biological and Environmental Reference Materials / Stephan Rückold." München : Verlag Dr. Hut, 2013. http://d-nb.info/1031844732/34.
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Roth, Liselott. "Reuse of construction materials : Environmental performance and assessment methodology." Doctoral thesis, Linköping : Dept. of Mechanical Engineering, Univ, 2005. http://www.ep.liu.se/diss/science_technology/09/28/index.html.
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Sahara, Emmy. "Stripping potentiometric determination of trace metals in environmental materials /." View thesis, 1996. http://library.uws.edu.au/adt-NUWS/public/adt-NUWS20030822.171402/index.html.
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Zhao, Rui. "Environmental risk management system design for hazardous waste materials." Thesis, University of Hull, 2012. http://hydra.hull.ac.uk/resources/hull:6227.
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Hazardous materials can be generally deemed as any material which, because of its quantity, concentration, or physical, chemical, or infectious characteristics, may cause, or pose a substantial or potential hazard to human health or the environment. In the context of "sustainable development", most 'materials' could be deemed to be 'hazardous' at some stage of their lifecycle, i.e. from extraction to final disposal. This PhD study develops a decision support system for engineers and policy makers to help limit environmental burden, by reducing the environmental risk and the associated carbon footprint, from the perspective of 'hazardous' materials in product design, through the application of 'game theory' and 'grey theory' etc, as well as various computational approaches, by helping the designer identify novel solutions or mitigation strategies. The thesis starts by introducing the problem situation of the study and identify the research objectives, as well as previous studies have been reviewed in order to set this study in context. Since it is evident that consumers drive the open market, and their preference may be influenced by the carbon footprint label of products, the decision support system proposes an improved carbon labelling scheme to demonstrate the significance of a product‘s carbon footprint in a more visual way. The prototype of the scheme is derived from the concept of 'tolerability of risk', providing a framework by which judgments can be made as to whether society will accept the risk from hazardous materials. Application of game theory for decision support is a novel approach in this study, which aids decision-making by selecting appropriate strategies for both organisations and policy makers to reduce environmental impact. In this context, a game between manufacturers and government in the field of clean production is generated with various game scenarios to reflect the variation trend of strategic actions, and then developed to discuss the reduction of the inherent risk posed by 'hazardous' materials and carbon emissions on the supply chain network. The 'hierarchy of waste' suggests that the most preferable state for sustainability is prevention or the elimination of waste. Although this is not wholly practicable in real terms, the framework gives the importance to waste minimisation and prevention, especially promotes the cleaner production. In addition to strategy selection for mitigating environmental impact, the decision support system also develops an evaluation methodology for application by engineers to aid decision-making on materials selection, thus to improve the materials performances, promote cleaner production and provide better and sustainable products for public consumption.
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Gillard, Stephen Paul. "Environmental electrochemistry : reactor design, electrode materials and process monitoring." Thesis, University of Portsmouth, 2004. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.407225.
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Lees, Joan Anne. "Modelling the magnetic properties of natural and environmental materials." Thesis, Coventry University, 1994. http://curve.coventry.ac.uk/open/items/aa273a60-0c0d-a613-81b9-b95cc2ec3fdd/1.
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Magnetic properties have been used to characterize natural and environmental materials. An evaluation of magnetic properties, for the modelling of sources of materials and minerals, has been completed. A methodological framework has been developed for the application of magnetic techniques to studies involving the quantification of sources of materials and minerals in any environment. the framework includes the idntification of sources using magnetic reconnaissance and multi-variate statistical classification techniques. magnetic measurements used are susceptibility (both field and laboratory), remanence and magnetization measurements. the linear additivity of magnetic measurements, and classification and linear modelling techniques, ahve been tested using datea for artificial laboratory mixtures and hypothetical mixing experimentrs. The limitations of using magnetic properties with these statistical and mathematical techniques are defined. the famework allows for hte testing of suitabililty of manetic modelling techniques in any sourceing study.
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Omole, Marcells Apiyo. "Fabrication of nanostructured materials for environmental remediation and sensing." Diss., Online access via UMI:, 2009.
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Chrysler, Benjamin D., Pelaez Silvana Ayala, Yuechen Wu, Shelby D. Vorndran, and Raymond K. Kostuk. "Environmental stability study of holographic solar spectrum splitting materials." SPIE-INT SOC OPTICAL ENGINEERING, 2016. http://hdl.handle.net/10150/622712.
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In this study the impact of outdoor temperature variations and solar illumination exposure on spectral filter material and holographic optical elements is examined. Although holographic components have been shown to be useful for solar spectrum splitting designs, relatively little quantitative data exist to demonstrate the extent to which these materials can withstand outdoor conditions. As researchers seek to investigate practical spectrum splitting designs, the environmental stability of holographic materials should be considered as an important factor. In the experiment presented, two holographic materials, Covestro Bayfol HX photopolymer and dichromated gelatin, and 3M reflective polymer filter materials are exposed to outdoor conditions for a period of several months. The environmental effect on absorption, spectral and angular bandwidth, peak efficiency, and Bragg matching conditions for the holograms are examined. Spectral bandwidth and transmittance of the 3M reflective filter material are also monitored. Holographic gratings are recorded, measured, and mounted on glass substrates and then sealed with a glass cover plate. The test samples are then mounted on a photovoltaic panel to simulate realistic temperature conditions and placed at an outdoor test facility in Tucson, Arizona. A duplicate set of holograms and 3M filter material is stored as a control group and periodically compared over the test period.
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Chen, Chien-Cheng. "OPTICAL MEASUREMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL URANIUM USING POROUS SILICA MATERIALS." VCU Scholars Compass, 2010. http://scholarscompass.vcu.edu/etd/2241.
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The focus of this research is on the optical measurement of uranyl in a solid matrix using fluorescence spectroscopy. Nanoporous silica-based materials were used to extract uranyl from contaminated soil and to enhance the fluorescence intensity and lifetime. The fluorescence lifetime and intensity of uranyl ions adsorbed on porous silica-based materials of varying pore size was measured as a function of pH and in the presence of fluoride. The feasibility of uranyl fluorescence detection on the top of soil by silica gel is carried out by four types of natural soil. The results show that the uranyl fluorescence intensity can be enhanced by approximately two orders of magnitude by the silica nanoporous matrix from pH 4-12 with the greatest enhancement occurring from pH 4-7. The enhanced fluorescence lifetime can be used in time-gated measurements to help minimize the influence of background environmental fluorophores. The pH and the fluoride variation causes different uranyl speciation and results in a peak shift in the fluorescence spectrum. The mechanism of the uranyl ion on the silica nanoporous matrix was studied through 15 different silica materials with different water content ratios and various concentrations of uranium on different silica structures. The result shows that the particle size, pore size, water content and uranyl concentration on silica surfaces are all important factors for optimizing the fluorescence intensity. The spacing between silica materials, either the pore inside materials or the space between particles, causes the variety of uranyl distribution on the material surface and changes the fluorescence performance. Also, X-Ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS) is used to identify the possible uranyl surface species on silica. The fluorescence emission spectra from silica materials and the XPS results are consistent with the presence of two different uranyl compounds. The specific surface area of silica materials plays an important role on uranyl adsorption mechanism. To further enhance the sensitivity, an optical ball lens was used to preferentially direct the fluorescence signal toward the excitation source in standoff measurements. The application of the ball lens was found to increase the detection distance up to 14 times.
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Onoda, Kinji. "Energy and environmental use of high performance titanium materials." Kyoto University, 2007. http://hdl.handle.net/2433/135580.
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Kyoto University (京都大学)0048
新制・課程博士
博士(エネルギー科学)
甲第13409号
エネ博第166号
新制||エネ||39(附属図書館)
UT51-2007-Q810
京都大学大学院エネルギー科学研究科エネルギー基礎科学専攻
(主査)教授 吉川 暹, 教授 八尾 健, 教授 萩原 理加
学位規則第4条第1項該当
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Nalin, Laura. "Degradation of environmental protection coatings for gas turbine materials." Thesis, Cranfield University, 2008. http://dspace.lib.cranfield.ac.uk/handle/1826/4522.
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Nowadays, problems of component materials reliability in gas and oil-fired gas turbines focus on assessing the potential behaviour of commonly employed coatings, in order to avoid expensive and unpredictable failure in service and producing new materials whose performance meets life time and manufacturing/ repairing requirements. This MPhil project has investigated the oxidative and corrosive degradation mechanisms for some of the alloy/coatings systems (CMSX-4, CMSX-4/ RT22, CMSX-4/ CN91 and CMSX-4/ “LCO22”), which are currently used for turbines blades and vanes, in order to achieve a better knowledge of materials behaviour and to improve models for the prediction of turbine components’ lives. To achieve this target the study has made use of realistic simulations of turbine exposure conditions in combined with pre- and post-exposure metrology of bar shape materials samples, while optical microscopy has been applied to describe the microstructural evolution during the exposure and the products of the degradation for the hot corrosion. For high temperature oxidation, over extended periods of time (up to 10,000 hours), the research has allowed to describe the morphological changes in respect of the exposure time and temperature and to determine the oxidation kinetics experienced by the alloy and coatings. A model has been presented for predicting θ- α-Al2O3 growth. Moreover, using NASA COSP spalling model, with rate constants values coming from this study, a comparison between experimental mass change data and prediction has been shown. The hot corrosion study has provided new quantitative metal loss data and observations that extend/validate an existing model for materials life prediction, based on defining the severity of the corrosion conditions through measures of gas composition and contaminant deposition flux.
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Zhang, Yue. "The Physicochemical Properties of Secondary Organic Materials." Thesis, Harvard University, 2015. http://nrs.harvard.edu/urn-3:HUL.InstRepos:17467502.
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The physicochemical properties of the secondary organic materials (SOMs) that constitute the particle phase have potentially important consequences for the growth, the reactivity, and ultimate fate of atmospheric organic aerosols, thereby affect climate, human health and visibility. A quantitative analysis of the physicochemical properties of the SOMs is important, but challenging. This thesis presents laboratory studies of α-pinene derived SOMs, which is one of the major components of secondary organic aerosols (SOAs) in the forests, by combing a flow tube reactor, aerosol particle mass analyzer (APM) and other online/offline measurement techniques.
A water-jacketed constant temperature flow tube reactor was built to produce SOM particles grown from either condensation or coagulation. Different ratios of α-pinene enantiomers were mixed and injected into the flow tube reactor for dark ozonolysis. A matrix of organic precursor and ozone concentrations was designed and tested in order to determine the optimal concentration to switch between condensation and coagulation. Results show that at 51 ± 1 ppm O3, condensation is the dominant growth mechanism when the α-pinene concentration is 0.125 ± 0.001 ppm, and coagulation is the dominant growth mechanism when the α-pinene concentration increases to 1.00 ± 0.03 ppm. A combination of both growth mechanisms is observed when the α-pinene concentration is in between the described values.
The study also proposed and tested the hypothesis that a 50:50 mixture of α-pinene enantiomers may result in SOM particles that have different physical properties, such as number-diameter distributions, when compared with those particles generated from a single enantiomer of α-pinene. The experiment was conducted within the condensational growth regime so that the chirality induced structure differences in oligomers can be maximized during the nucleation and condensation. Nevertheless, our analysis indicates that, after removing the effects of ozone and temperature, the chirality-induced effects are minimal and within our detection limit. Even though the results were negative, the method used in this experiment provided useful experience for the viscosity related experiments in this thesis.
Another important property of the SOM is its viscosity. The viscosities of atmospheric particles determine whether their interactions with surrounding gases are confined to the surface or can proceed to the interior. Viscosities affect the gas-particle diffusion rate, and ultimately influences the SOM’s other physical properties, such as particle size, and chemical properties, such as reactivity. The work presented in this thesis estimates the viscosity of submicron organic particles while they are still suspended as an aerosol without further post-processing techniques that can have the possibility of altering the properties of semivolatile materials. The results show that the studied particles are semisolid up to 58% relative humidity (RH) and may become liquid only at a higher RH. These results imply that atmospheric particles, at least those similar to the ones studied and for low to middle RH regimes, are expected to reach equilibrium only rather slowly with the chemical composition of the gas phase, sometimes on timescales longer than the actual residence time of the particles in the atmosphere.
Last but not the least, the results of offline particle analysis from two collaboration studies are also discussed in this thesis. The results show how water vapor, or RH, affects the physicochemical properties of the α-pinene derived SOM particles. In one study, the diffusivity is underestimated by approximately 8 orders of magnitude if calculated from the Stokes-Einstein equation, which suggests the breakdown of Stokes-Einstein equation for small gas molecules. The second study shows the surface properties of SOM particles can be influenced by the RH, leading to a difference of the gas-particle interactions at the particle surface.Engineering and Applied Sciences - Engineering Sciences
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Maguire, Dawn Laurel. "Failure mechanisms in VLSI bonds subjected to mechanical and environmental stresses." Thesis, Georgia Institute of Technology, 1986. http://hdl.handle.net/1853/30523.
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Goldthorpe, Kathryn. "Stability of cementitious materials in saline environments." Thesis, University of Aberdeen, 1997. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.361798.
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The complexity of cementitious matrices and their application in the immobilisation of radioactive waste has led to detailed examination of their ability to condition permeating water to high pH by both experimental and thermodynamic studies. This thesis considers the stability and solubility of pure hydrate phases: Ca(OH)2; CaO-SiO2-H2O gel, Ca:Si = 0.85, 1.1, 1.4, 1.8; 3CaO.Al2O3.6HzO; 3CaO.Al2O3.CaSO4.12H2O and 3CaO.Al2O3.3CaSO4.32H2O, and the phase formation and stability within CaO-SiO2-CaCO3-H2O and CaO-Al2O3-SiO2-H2O compositions aged in saline solutions, up to 1.5M NaCl and 0.05M MgSo4, at 25°, 55° and 85°C. The two main high pH conditioning phases of cementitious systems are Ca(OH)2 and C-S-H gel. Sodium chloride enhances the solubility of Ca(OH)2 and causes a slight reduction in the Ca:Si ratio of C-S-H gels by the progressive leaching of calcium. Silicate polymerisation within C-S-H phases is inhibited by sodium chloride though it is uncertain how this alters the crystallisation kinetics. The pH buffering capacity is maintained when aged in sodium chloride concentrations 0.5, 1.0 and 1.5M at 25°, 55° and 85°C. The stability of calcium sulfoaluminate aged in sodium chloride is greater than of 3CaO.Al2O3.6H2O, which is unstable with respect to 3CaO.Al2O3.CaCl2.10H2O in NaCl < 0.5M. These phases undergo a progressive phase change to the 3CaO.Al2O3.0.5CaSO4.0.5CaCl2.10-12H2O and 3CaO.Al2O3.CaCl2.10H2O at increasing aqueous Cl:SO4 ratios. The formation of a limited solid solution region within 3CaO.Al2O3.xCaSO4.l-xCaCl2.yH2O: 0.00 ≤ SO4:Cl ≤ 0.06, was characterised. In magnesium sulfate, 5 - 50m.mol/l, calcium within hydrate phases is progressively replaced by magnesium with formation of Mg(OH)2, MgO-SiO2-H2O gel, 4MgO.Al2O3.xH2O and gypsum. The pH conditioned by the resultant solid assembly decreases to less than that desirable for containment of radioactive waste, to < 9. Consideration of the phase formation and persistence within the CaO-SiO2-CaCO3-H2O and CaO-Al2O3-SiO2-H2O systems was examined in solutions containing both sodium chloride and magnesium sulfate. The chemical interactions observed were dominated by the replacement of calcium by magnesium within the solid phases with the formation and persistence of mixtures of Mg(OH)2, MgO-SiO2-H2O gel and gypsum. At low Mg:Ca-CO3 ratios the persistent stability of gehlenite hydrate at 25°C was observed in appropriate samples. The chemistry of the aqueous phase is dependent on the Mg:Ca-CaCO3 ratio as well as the Ca:Si ratio. At high Mg:Ca-CaCO3 ratios the high pH conditioning properties are destroyed and buffering occurs at a value below pH 9.
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Pinder, Adam. "Decomposition of organic materials within burial environments." Thesis, University of York, 2016. http://etheses.whiterose.ac.uk/17404/.
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The funerary practices of many past cultures in Northwestern Europe involve the burial of the deceased in clothing and in wooden coffins. Although objects made from wood, textiles and leather that exhibit exceptional levels of preservation, or that hold great significance, are commonly analysed by a wide range of analytical techniques, fragments of degraded coffin wood and funerary clothing materials have not, to date, been chemically analysed. This material therefore represents a wealth of potential information that has yet to be investigated. By identifying and examining the preservation state of wood, textiles and leather placed in archaeological human burials, this research sought to explore the information that could be gained from analysing these degraded materials, and to develop an understanding of the long term decomposition trajectories of different archaeological materials buried in a range of burial environments. This analysis was complemented with data obtained from relatively shorter term burial experiments, aimed at investigating the short term diagenetic processes. A suite of appropriate analytical chemistry techniques were employed to assess the degradation that had occurred in wood, textiles and leather by comparison with undegraded modern analogues. Using this approach, it has been shown that by examining the component biopolymers, not only can their preservation state be assessed, but a greater depth of information regarding their provenance may be gained in comparison to traditional archaeological methods. The degradation modifications that have occurred within the burial environments were shown to be attributable to a range of fungal, microbial and chemical factors. The type and extent of the degradation allow conditions within the burial environments to be elucidated. These findings have potential implications for the understanding, interpretation and conservation of buried archaeological and forensic materials.
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Ganneau, Francois P. 1979. "From nanohardness to strength properties of cohesive-frictional materials : application to shale materials." Thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2004. http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/28626.
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Thesis (S.M.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Civil and Environmental Engineering, 2004.Includes bibliographical references (p. 213-221).
Advanced experimental and theoretical micromechanics such as nanoindentation makes it possible today to break down highly heterogeneous materials to the scale where physical chemistry meets (continuum) mechanics, to extract intrinsic material properties that do not change from one material to another, and to upscale the intrinsic material behavior from the sub-microscale to the macroscale. While well established for elastic properties, the extraction of strength properties of cohesive-frictional materials from nanoindentation tests has not been investigated in the same depth. The focus of this thesis is to investigate in depth the link between nanohardness of cohesive-frictional materials and strength properties. To address our objectives, we develop a rational methodology based on limit analysis theorems and implement this methodology in a finite element, based computational environment. By applying this technique to indentation analysis, we show that it is possible to extract the cohesion and the friction angle from two conical indentation tests having different apex angles. The methodology is validated on a model cohesive-frictional material, bulk metallic glass, and a first application to a highly heterogeneous natural composite material, shale materials, is shown. The results are important in particular for the Oil and Gas industry, for which the reduced strength properties (cohesion and friction angle) are critical for the success of drilling operations.
by Francois P. Ganneau.
S.M.
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Zachau, Walker Miriam E. (Miriam Elizabeth). "Modeling environmental impact of unfired bricks in India." Thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2013. http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/80906.
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Thesis (S.B.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Materials Science and Engineering, 2013.This electronic version was submitted by the student author. The certified thesis is available in the Institute Archives and Special Collections.
Cataloged from student-submitted PDF version of thesis.
Includes bibliographical references (p. 30-32).
Brick manufacturing requires a considerable amount of energy and land, but these numbers have been difficult to quantify in rural parts of the developing world. The environmental impact of unfired bricks in India is investigated through modeling the effects of materials composition and processing on energy consumption, carbon dioxide equivalent emissions, and land surface area use. The analysis uses a cradle-to-gate life cycle assessment to quantitatively estimate these impacts. The depth of soil extraction has a significantly affects the land use required for bricks; changing this depth in practice or through regulation has the potential to reduce environmental impact without affecting brick performance. The impact of unfired bricks depends greatly on composition, in particular the amount and type of stabilizer and the incorporation of fly ash. While stabilizers increase the environmental burden, the performance gain is potentially worth these effects when compared to energy intensive fired bricks. Future work could expand the model to quantify the relevant cost and performance tradeoffs with environmental impact.
by Miriam E. Zachau Walker.
S.B.
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Li, Gonghu. "FT-IR studies of zeolite materials characterization and environmental applications /." Diss., University of Iowa, 2005. http://ir.uiowa.edu/etd/96.
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Lindsey, Martha A. "Implications of Literacy Related to Comprehension of Environmental Health Materials." Diss., The University of Arizona, 2010. http://hdl.handle.net/10150/193851.
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Health literacy involves basic reading and numeracy, allowing people to function as health care consumers, reading, understanding, evaluating and using information in health documents. For thirty years, the gap between the reading level of most of the public, eighth grade, and the reading level of most written health information, above the tenth grade, has been perceived to prevent people from comprehending health instructions or educating themselves about health conditions.This study examined comprehension of health materials, using print environmental public health information about relatively obscure aspects of arsenic and ultraviolet light contamination. The research question was "to what extent are print materials for environmental health promotion comprehensible by the target audience of readers at the eighth grade reading level?" This study tested a hypothesis that materials written at the seventh grade level would be more comprehensible than those written at the twelfth grade level for individuals with an average reading level.Materials were located, assessed for reading level, rewritten to the seventh grade reading level, and vetted by environmental health experts. The mean reading level of the participants was eighth grade. The study used a pretest / posttest design with follow up interviews to asses some participants' perception of the reading materials and test. Data was analyzed using repeat measures ANOVA and content analysis.Contrary to anticipated results, the study showed when people with average reading ability read twelfth grade material, they were able to comprehend it as well as they did seventh-grade material. Two follow-up interviews provided anecdotal evidence indicating people with an average reading level would not voluntarily choose to read the twelfth grade material.Although the results of this small exploratory study found individuals, with average reading levels, can read and comprehend written information about environmental health topics, health literacy professionals cannot stop being concerned about the perceived mismatch between the reading levels of American adults and reading levels of environmental health information. It is important to undertake additional studies to better understand how much of an encumbrance hard-to-read information may be placing on individuals with a need to know about environmental hazards and their health.