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The historical impact of anthropogenic air-borne sulphur on the Pleistocene rock art of Sulawesi. Sci Rep 2022; 12:21512. [PMID: 36513705 PMCID: PMC9748042 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-25810-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/03/2022] [Accepted: 12/05/2022] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
The Maros-Pangkep karst in southwest Sulawesi, Indonesia, contains some of the world's oldest rock art. However, the Pleistocene images survive only as weathered patches of pigment on exfoliated limestone surfaces. Salt efflorescence underneath the case-hardened limestone substrate causes spall-flaking, and it has been proposed that the loss of artwork has accelerated over recent decades. Here, we utilise historical photographs and superposition constraints to show that the bulk of the damage was present before 1950 CE, and describe the role of anthropogenic sulphur emissions in promoting gypsum-salt efflorescence and rock art decay. The rock art shelters have been exposed to domestic fire-use and intensive rice cultivation with post-harvest burning of straw for hundreds (if not thousands) of years, both of which release chemically reactive sulphur oxides for gypsum formation, with cumulative effects. Analysis of time-lapse photography indicates that the rate of rock art loss may be on the decline, consistent with the history of fire-use in southwest Sulawesi. At present, vandalism and sulphur emissions from diesel-powered traffic and cement-based infrastructure development constitute localised threats. Our findings indicate that there are grounds for being cautiously optimistic that targeted conservation measures will ensure the longevity of some of our oldest artistic treasures.
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Pergola MT, Saulino L, Castellaneta M, Rita A, Pecora G, Cozzi M, Moretti N, Pericolo O, Pierangeli D, Romano S, Viccaro M, Ripullone F. Towards sustainable management of forest residues in the southern Apennine Mediterranean mountain forests: a scenario-based approach. ANNALS OF FOREST SCIENCE 2022; 79:14. [PMID: 35370435 PMCID: PMC8960107 DOI: 10.1186/s13595-022-01128-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/24/2021] [Accepted: 02/09/2022] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
KEY MESSAGE Managing forest residues according to the carbon content of the soil helps to minimize the ecological footprint of their removal. CONTEXT In Mediterranean mountain ecosystems, unsustainable harvesting of wood residues might contribute to land degradation, carbon, and nutrient depletion in forest soils. AIMS This study aimed to assess the amount of forest biomass residues that should be left on-site to minimize the depletion of soil fertility. METHODS We estimated the availability of biomass residues in the public forest land of the Basilicata region of Southern Italy by collecting stand-scale inventory attributes from forest management plans. Subsequently, we quantified the amount of forest biomass residue released by implementing a scenario-based approach. RESULTS Approximately 5800 m3 year-1 of forest residues could be potentially available for bio-based industries at the regional scale within the next 10 years. Such residues mainly belong to broadleaved forest types, having a high variability in their soil organic stock (228.5-705.8 Mg C ha-1) and altitudinally spanning from 400 to 1500 m a.s.l. In these forests, the simulated scenarios displayed a wide range of average harvestable residues from 2.5 to 5.5 m3 ha-1, containing approximately 1.1 to 2.1 Mg ha-1 of organic carbon. CONCLUSION Our study suggests that forest management plans are a useful source of information to estimate the available forest biomass residues consistently. In southern Mediterranean mountain forests, the management of forest residues according to soil carbon content helps to minimize the environmental impact and increase their sustainability.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maria Teresa Pergola
- Ages s.r.l. s - Spin-off Accademico, Università degli Studi della Basilicata, Viale dell’Ateneo Lucano, 10 – 85100 Potenza, Italy
| | - Luigi Saulino
- Dipartimento di Agraria, Università di Napoli Federico II, via Università 100, IT-80055 Portici (Napoli), Italy
| | - Maria Castellaneta
- Scuola di Scienze Agrarie, Forestali, Alimentari ed Ambientali, Università di Basilicata, viale dell’Ateneo Lucano, 10. I-85100 Potenza, Italy
| | - Angelo Rita
- Dipartimento di Agraria, Università di Napoli Federico II, via Università 100, IT-80055 Portici (Napoli), Italy
- Scuola di Scienze Agrarie, Forestali, Alimentari ed Ambientali, Università di Basilicata, viale dell’Ateneo Lucano, 10. I-85100 Potenza, Italy
| | - Giovanni Pecora
- Scuola di Scienze Agrarie, Forestali, Alimentari ed Ambientali, Università di Basilicata, viale dell’Ateneo Lucano, 10. I-85100 Potenza, Italy
| | - Mario Cozzi
- Scuola di Scienze Agrarie, Forestali, Alimentari ed Ambientali, Università di Basilicata, viale dell’Ateneo Lucano, 10. I-85100 Potenza, Italy
| | - Nicola Moretti
- Scuola di Scienze Agrarie, Forestali, Alimentari ed Ambientali, Università di Basilicata, viale dell’Ateneo Lucano, 10. I-85100 Potenza, Italy
| | - Osvaldo Pericolo
- Scuola di Scienze Agrarie, Forestali, Alimentari ed Ambientali, Università di Basilicata, viale dell’Ateneo Lucano, 10. I-85100 Potenza, Italy
| | - Domenico Pierangeli
- Scuola di Scienze Agrarie, Forestali, Alimentari ed Ambientali, Università di Basilicata, viale dell’Ateneo Lucano, 10. I-85100 Potenza, Italy
| | - Severino Romano
- Scuola di Scienze Agrarie, Forestali, Alimentari ed Ambientali, Università di Basilicata, viale dell’Ateneo Lucano, 10. I-85100 Potenza, Italy
| | - Mauro Viccaro
- Scuola di Scienze Agrarie, Forestali, Alimentari ed Ambientali, Università di Basilicata, viale dell’Ateneo Lucano, 10. I-85100 Potenza, Italy
| | - Francesco Ripullone
- Scuola di Scienze Agrarie, Forestali, Alimentari ed Ambientali, Università di Basilicata, viale dell’Ateneo Lucano, 10. I-85100 Potenza, Italy
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Song C, Zhang C, Zhang S, Lin H, Kim Y, Ramakrishnan M, Du Y, Zhang Y, Zheng H, Barceló D. Thermochemical liquefaction of agricultural and forestry wastes into biofuels and chemicals from circular economy perspectives. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2020; 749:141972. [PMID: 33370925 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.141972] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/30/2019] [Revised: 08/19/2020] [Accepted: 08/23/2020] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
Waste produced in various fields and activities in society has been increasing, thereby causing immediate environmental harm and a serious-global problem. Recently, the attitude towards waste has changed along with innovations making waste as a new resource. Agricultural and forestry wastes (AFWs) are globally produced in huge amounts and thought to be an important resource to be used for decreasing the dependence on fossil fuels. The central issue is to take use of AFW for different types of products making it a source of energy and at the same time refining it for the production of valuable chemicals. In this review, we present an overview of the composition and pretreatment of AFWs, thermochemical liquefaction including direct liquefaction and indirect liquefaction (liquid products from syngas by gasification) for producing biofuels and/or chemicals. The following two key points were discussed in-depth: the solvent or medium of thermochemical conversion and circular economy of liquid products. The concept of bio-economy entails economic use of waste streams, leading to the widened assessment of biomass use for energy where sustainability is a key issue coined in the circular economy. The smart use of AFWs requires a combination of available waste streams and local technical solutions to meet sustainability criteria.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chengfang Song
- Zhejiang Province Key Laboratory of Soil Contamination Bioremediation, Zhejiang A&F University, Hangzhou 311300, China
| | - Cheng Zhang
- Zhejiang Province Key Laboratory of Soil Contamination Bioremediation, Zhejiang A&F University, Hangzhou 311300, China
| | - Shicheng Zhang
- Shanghai Key Laboratory of Atmospheric Particle Pollution and Prevention (LAP3), Department of Environmental Science and Engineering, Fudan University, Shanghai 200438, China
| | - Hui Lin
- The Institute of Environment, Resources, Soil and Fertilizers, Zhejiang Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Hangzhou 310021, China
| | - Yrjälä Kim
- Zhejiang Province Key Laboratory of Soil Contamination Bioremediation, Zhejiang A&F University, Hangzhou 311300, China; Department of Forest Sciences, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Muthusamy Ramakrishnan
- State Key Laboratory of Subtropical Silviculture, Zhejiang A&F University, Hangzhou 311300, China
| | - Yanqiang Du
- National Land Joint Engineering Research Center for Rural Environment Resources Utilization and Remediation, Nanjing Agricultural University, Nanjing 210095, China
| | - Yan Zhang
- Zhejiang Province Key Laboratory of Soil Contamination Bioremediation, Zhejiang A&F University, Hangzhou 311300, China
| | - Huabao Zheng
- Zhejiang Province Key Laboratory of Soil Contamination Bioremediation, Zhejiang A&F University, Hangzhou 311300, China.
| | - Damià Barceló
- Catalan Institute for Water Research (ICRA), Scientific and Technological Park of the University of Girona, Girona, Spain; Water and Soil Quality Research Group, Department of Environmental Chemistry, IDAEA-CSIC, Barcelona, Spain.
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Rapid Recent Deforestation Incursion in a Vulnerable Indigenous Land in the Brazilian Amazon and Fire-Driven Emissions of Fine Particulate Aerosol Pollutants. FORESTS 2020. [DOI: 10.3390/f11080829] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/02/2023]
Abstract
Deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon is related to the use of fire to remove natural vegetation and install crop cultures or pastures. In this study, we evaluated the relation between deforestation, land-use and land-cover (LULC) drivers and fire emissions in the Apyterewa Indigenous Land, Eastern Brazilian Amazon. In addition to the official Brazilian deforestation data, we used a geographic object-based image analysis (GEOBIA) approach to perform the LULC mapping in the Apyterewa Indigenous Land, and the Brazilian biomass burning emission model with fire radiative power (3BEM_FRP) to estimate emitted particulate matter with a diameter less than 2.5 µm (PM2.5), a primary human health risk. The GEOBIA approach showed a remarkable advancement of deforestation, agreeing with the official deforestation data, and, consequently, the conversion of primary forests to agriculture within the Apyterewa Indigenous Land in the past three years (200 km2), which is clearly associated with an increase in the PM2.5 emissions from fire. Between 2004 and 2016 the annual average emission of PM2.5 was estimated to be 3594 ton year−1, while the most recent interval of 2017–2019 had an average of 6258 ton year−1. This represented an increase of 58% in the annual average of PM2.5 associated with fires for the study period, contributing to respiratory health risks and the air quality crisis in Brazil in late 2019. These results expose an ongoing critical situation of intensifying forest degradation and potential forest collapse, including those due to a savannization forest-climate feedback, within “protected areas” in the Brazilian Amazon. To reverse this scenario, the implementation of sustainable agricultural practices and development of conservation policies to promote forest regrowth in degraded preserves are essential.
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Amaral SS, Costa MAM, Soares Neto TG, Costa MP, Dias FF, Anselmo E, Santos JCD, Carvalho JAD. CO 2, CO, hydrocarbon gases and PM 2.5 emissions on dry season by deforestation fires in the Brazilian Amazonia. ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTION (BARKING, ESSEX : 1987) 2019; 249:311-320. [PMID: 30901645 DOI: 10.1016/j.envpol.2019.03.023] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/05/2018] [Revised: 03/07/2019] [Accepted: 03/08/2019] [Indexed: 06/09/2023]
Abstract
The rate of deforestation in Brazil increased by 29% between 2015 and 2016, resulting in an increase of greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) of 9%. Deforestation fires in the Amazonia are the main source of GHG in Brazil. In this work, amounts of CO2, CO, main hydrocarbon gases and PM2.5 emitted during deforestation fires, under real conditions directly in Brazilian Amazonia, were determined. A brief discussion of the relationship between the annual emission of CO2 equivalent (CO2,eq) and Paris Agreement was conducted. Experimental fires were carried out in Western Amazonia (Candeias do Jamari, Rio Branco and Cruzeiro do Sul) and results were compared with a previous fire carried out in Eastern Amazonia (Alta Floresta). The average total fresh biomass on the ground before burning and the total biomass consumption were estimated to be 591 ton ha-1 and 33%, respectively. CO2, CO, CH4, and non-methane hydrocarbon (NMHC) average emission factors, for the four sites, were 1568, 140, 8, and 3 g kg-1 of burned dry biomass, respectively. PM2.5 showed large variation among the sites (0.9-16 g kg-1). Emissions per hectare of forest were estimated as 216,696 kg of CO2, 18,979 kg of CO, 1,058 kg of CH4, and 496 kg of NMHC. The average annual emission of equivalent CO2 was estimated as 301 ± 53 Mt year-1 for the Brazilian Amazonia forest. From 2013, the estimated CO2,eq showed a trend to increase in Amazon region. The present study is an alert and provides important information that can be used in the development of the public policies to control emissions and deforestation in the Brazilian Amazonia.
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Affiliation(s)
- Simone Simões Amaral
- Department of Energy, UNESP - São Paulo State University, Campus of Guaratinguetá, SP, Brazil.
| | | | - Turibio Gomes Soares Neto
- Combustion and Propulsion Associated Laboratory, INPE - National Institute for Space, Research, Cachoeira Paulista, SP, Brazil
| | - Marillia Pereira Costa
- Combustion and Propulsion Associated Laboratory, INPE - National Institute for Space, Research, Cachoeira Paulista, SP, Brazil
| | - Fabiana Ferrari Dias
- Combustion and Propulsion Associated Laboratory, INPE - National Institute for Space, Research, Cachoeira Paulista, SP, Brazil
| | - Edson Anselmo
- Combustion and Propulsion Associated Laboratory, INPE - National Institute for Space, Research, Cachoeira Paulista, SP, Brazil
| | - José Carlos Dos Santos
- Combustion and Propulsion Associated Laboratory, INPE - National Institute for Space, Research, Cachoeira Paulista, SP, Brazil
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Inayat A, Nassef AM, Rezk H, Sayed ET, Abdelkareem MA, Olabi AG. Fuzzy modeling and parameters optimization for the enhancement of biodiesel production from waste frying oil over montmorillonite clay K-30. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2019; 666:821-827. [PMID: 30818206 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2019.02.321] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/24/2018] [Revised: 02/06/2019] [Accepted: 02/20/2019] [Indexed: 06/09/2023]
Abstract
Transesterification is a promising technology for the biodiesel production to provide an alternative fuel that considers the environmental concerns. From the economic and environmental protection points of view, utilization of waste frying oil for the production of biodiesel addresses very beneficial impacts. Production of higher yield of biodiesel is a challenging process in order to commercialize it with a lower cost. The current study focuses on the influence of different parameters such as reaction temperature (°C), reaction period (min), oil to methanol ratio and amount of catalyst (wt%) on the production of biodiesel. The main objective of this work is to develop a model via fuzzy logic approach in order to maximize the biodiesel produced from waste frying oil using montmorillonite Clay K-30 as a catalyst. The optimization for the operating parameters has been performed via particle swarm optimization (PSO) approach. During the optimization process, the decision variables were represented by four different operating parameters: temperature (40-140 °C), reaction period (60-300 min), oil/methanol ratio (1:6-1:18) and amount of catalyst (1-5 wt%). The model has been validated with the experimental data and compared with the optimal results reported based on other optimization techniques. Results showed the increment of biodiesel production by 15% using the proposed strategy compared to the earlier study. The obtained biodiesel production yield reached 93.70% with the optimal parameters for a temperature at 69.66 °C, a reaction period of 300 min, oil/methanol ratio of 1:9 and an amount of catalyst of 5 wt%.
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Affiliation(s)
- Abrar Inayat
- Department of Sustainable and Renewable Energy Engineering, University of Sharjah, 27272 Sharjah, United Arab Emirates.
| | - Ahmed M Nassef
- College of Engineering at Wadi Addawaser, Prince Sattam Bin Abdulaziz University, Saudi Arabia; Computers and Automatic Control Engineering Department, Faculty of Engineering, Tanta University, Egypt
| | - Hegazy Rezk
- College of Engineering at Wadi Addawaser, Prince Sattam Bin Abdulaziz University, Saudi Arabia; Electrical Engineering Department, Faculty of Engineering, Minia University, Egypt
| | - Enas T Sayed
- Chemical Engineering Department, Faculty of Engineering, Minia University, Egypt; Center for Advanced Materials Research, University of Sharjah, 27272, Sharjah, United Arab Emirates
| | - Mohammad A Abdelkareem
- Department of Sustainable and Renewable Energy Engineering, University of Sharjah, 27272 Sharjah, United Arab Emirates; Chemical Engineering Department, Faculty of Engineering, Minia University, Egypt; Center for Advanced Materials Research, University of Sharjah, 27272, Sharjah, United Arab Emirates
| | - A G Olabi
- Department of Sustainable and Renewable Energy Engineering, University of Sharjah, 27272 Sharjah, United Arab Emirates; Center for Advanced Materials Research, University of Sharjah, 27272, Sharjah, United Arab Emirates; Mechanical Engineering and Design, Aston University, School of Engineering and Applied Science, Aston Triangle, Birmingham, B4 7ET, United Kingdom.
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Malico I, Pereira SN, Costa MJ. Black carbon trends in southwestern Iberia in the context of the financial and economic crisis. The role of bioenergy. ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE AND POLLUTION RESEARCH INTERNATIONAL 2017; 24:476-488. [PMID: 27730506 DOI: 10.1007/s11356-016-7805-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/21/2016] [Accepted: 09/29/2016] [Indexed: 06/06/2023]
Abstract
Since black carbon concentrations are useful to reveal changes in anthropogenic activities, measurements taken from 2007 to 2015 in a Portuguese city are used to assess to which extent the ambient air was impacted by the economic crisis. The average black carbon concentrations are representative of an urban area of small size (1.3 ± 1.3 μg m-3). The highest concentrations are observed in the heating season, being biomass combustion one of the causes for the high values. The daily cycle of black carbon concentrations presents both morning and evening peaks, mainly due to road traffic and, in the heating season, to domestic heating as well. The yearly averaged black carbon mass concentrations decreased 33 % from 2007 to 2015, possibly due to a combination of the economic recession and environmental legislation. The reduction in road traffic led to a decrease in the daily morning peak from 2007 to 2015. This reduction was not followed by a decrease in the evening peak, explained by an increase in biomass burning. Biomass is the cheapest heating fuel in Portugal, and its consumption increased in the aftermath of the economic crisis. The use of bioenergy is an alternative to fossil fuels and presents many advantages. However, energy policies should discourage inefficient biomass burning and promote better ways of exploiting the available energy resources and emission air pollution mitigation strategies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Isabel Malico
- Departamento de Física, Escola de Ciências e Tecnologia, Universidade de Évora, Rua Romão Ramalho 59, Évora, Portugal.
- LAETA, IDMEC, Instituto Superior Técnico, Universidade de Lisboa, Av. Rovisco Pais 1, 1049-001, Lisbon, Portugal.
| | - Sérgio Nepomuceno Pereira
- Departamento de Física, Instituto de Ciências da Terra, Instituto de Investigação e Formação Avançada, Universidade de Évora, Rua Romão Ramalho 59, Évora, Portugal
| | - Maria João Costa
- Departamento de Física, Instituto de Ciências da Terra, Escola de Ciências e Tecnologia, Universidade de Évora, Rua Romão Ramalho 59, Évora, Portugal
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Rafael S, Tarelho L, Monteiro A, Monteiro T, Gonçalves C, Freitas S, Lopes M. Atmospheric Emissions from Forest Biomass Residues to Energy Supply Chain: A Case Study in Portugal. ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEERING SCIENCE 2015; 32:505-515. [PMID: 26064039 PMCID: PMC4449722 DOI: 10.1089/ees.2014.0420] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/12/2014] [Accepted: 02/13/2015] [Indexed: 06/04/2023]
Abstract
During the past decades, pressures on global environment and energy security have led to an increasing demand on renewable energy sources and diversification of the world's energy supply. The Portuguese energy strategy considers the use of Forest Biomass Residues (FBR) to energy as being essential to accomplish the goals established in the National Energy Strategy for 2020. However, despite the advantages pointing to FBR to the energy supply chain, few studies have evaluated the potential impacts on air quality. In this context, a case study was selected to estimate the atmospheric emissions of the FBR to the energy supply chain in Portugal. Results revealed that production, harvesting, and energy conversion processes are the main culprits for the biomass energy supply chain emissions (with a contribution higher than 90%), while the transport processes have a minor importance for all the pollutants. Compared with the coal-fired plants, the FBR combustion produces lower greenhouses emissions, on a mass basis of fuel consumed; the same is true for NOX and SO2 emissions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sandra Rafael
- Corresponding author: CESAM, Department of Environment and Planning, University of Aveiro, Aveiro 3810-193, Portugal. Phone: +351 234 370 200; Fax: +351 234 370 309; E-mail:
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