The photovoltaic (PV) panel can produce electrical energy that is very environmentally friendly and easy to use. The use of PV panels is suitable for supplying peak loads or at night using batteries as energy storage. However, the battery needs to manage for control, and the battery can last long. The solution to battery management problems is through research about the battery charging system. The DC-DC converter used is the Single Ended Primary Inductance Converter (SEPIC) type. Voltage Control of the battery charging using Adaptive Neuro-Fuzzy Inference System (ANFIS). In the simulation of bright conditions, ANFIS controls can track the charging point set point and obtain a voltage response with a rise time of 0.0028 s, a maximum overshoot of 0.027 %, a peak time of 0.008 s, and a settling time of 0.0193 s. When charging a solar tracker, PV battery gets a 0.25 % increase compared to a fixed PV panel. PV solar tracker can follow the direction of the sun's position. The irradiation value and maximum temperature affect the input voltage and input current that enters the converter. © The Authors, published by EDP Sciences, 2020.

World energy consumption increases with time, so that occur an energy imbalance. Many breakthroughs have developed to utilize renewable energy. The photovoltaic system is one of the easy-to-use renewable energies. The power conversion from PV fixed is still low, so the PV system is designed using the active dual-axis solar tracker. The PV tracker position can be adjusted to change the sun position to get maximum efficiency. The active dual-axis solar tracker system is integrated with the maximum power point tracking (MPPT) algorithm to keep PV operating at a maximum power point even though input variations change. The active dual-axis solar tracker system integrated with the maximum power point tracking (MPPT) algorithm to keep PV operating at a maximum power point even though input variations change. Tracking test simulation had done by comparing the output power of a fixed PV system with the active dual-axis solar tracker. Type-2 fuzzy logic based MPPT successfully increased the average output power by 10.48 % with the highest increase of 17.48 % obtained at 15:00 West Indonesia Time (GMT+7). The difference in power from a fixed PV system with the active dual-axis solar tracker of 36.08 W is from the output power worth 206.3 to 242.4 W. © The Authors, published by EDP Sciences, 2020.

Large applied projects in various sub-fields of environmental science studied and analyzed properties of organic matter. The “Life-Sure” is as continuation of started work for cost effective bottom sediments treatment where organic matter play important role of sorption of urban contaminants; “CONTRA” - beach wrack studies for advanced value-based bioeconomy development. Another project on Jurassic clay is interesting in discourse on Pleistocene glaciers glaciodynamics. Material from field was tested by 3D fluorescence excitation-emission matrix (EEM) providing “fingerprints” for a single compound or a mixture of fluorescent components. Thus humic macromolecules might be well seen nevertheless structural units have variable effects on the wavelength as well as intensity of fluorescence. It decreases with increasing molecular size of the humic macromolecule. For applied environmental projects this is well non-destructive tool to quantify the decomposition degree of organic matter requiring negligible amount of sample. This important method is valid for both organic matter and humic substances analytics. Chemical nature of humic substances can be correlated to structural information, e.g., functional groups, poly-condensation, aromaticity, dynamic properties related to intermolecular interactions. Acquired data from EEM provided significant input for scientific knowledge and innovation along with other analytical tools. 

The lack of water in the future will force society to find more sophisticated solutions for treatment and improvement of groundwater wherever it comes from. Contamination of soil and groundwater is a legacy of modern society, prevention of contaminants spread and secondary water reuse options shall be considered. The aim of the book chapter is to give oversight view on problems and challenges linked to groundwater quality in Eastern Baltic region whilst through case studies explaining the practical problems with groundwater monitoring, remediation and overall environmental quality analysis. The reader will get introduced with case studies in industry levels as credibility of scientific fundamentals is higher when practical solutions are shown. Eastern Baltic countries experience cover contamination problems that are mainly of historic origin due to former Soviet military and industrial policy implementation through decades. Short summaries for each case study are given and main conclusions provided in form of recommendations at the very end of the chapter.

Landfills (dumps) are places where the end of the life cycle of products can be found - useful material is dumped away from the sight creating contaminant flows around. Another problem is huge unexplored potential of resources recycling - we have limited knowledge also on useful elements and materials that are buried. The solution to overcome the limitations that provide remote sensing and traditional geodesy, proximal sensing techniques could be used. “Near surface geophysics” with operation at or just below the soil surface, significantly may contribute to give answers that traditionally are solved only after excavation. Geophysical methods are various, those can be active (i.e. create its own signal) or passive (i.e. register an existing signal); invasive (by inserting devices into the soil) or non-destructive. Some of these methods are static (e.g. a sequence of inserted electrodes), others can be used in a mobile way (e.g. pulled by a quad-bike). In general, their depth of exploration can vary from a few decimetres to some tens of metres. Thus in range of wide geophysical methodology spectrum almost all methods might be of use for unknown dump exploration depending on circumstances. In this paper, the aim is to macro-characterize anthropogenic geomorphological forms for contouring of old buried dumps by use of magnetometry, and geoelectric research methods to provide knowledge on approximate content of the dump. Protonmagnetometer was used in Eastern Latvia to determine unseen on surface dumpsite, buried in forest; induced polarisation and electric resistivity research was done in Southern Sweden for the macro-content analysis of dump hills composed of glass industry residuals and construction waste mixture. Geophysical surveying was performed to support site investigation with respect to landfill-related environmental problems, to enhance the opportunity for contouring of location of material mass and initially evaluate its physical properties. Results have shown good potential of geophysical surveying to spatially characterize landfill masses (location and dimensions) and to identify the internal structure of a landfill site, which already provides valuable information to estimate the landfill mining (material recovery) potential of landfills.

The urban waste in tourist cities needs comprehensive global research efforts and proceeded action as for metropolitan areas huge impact and load on waste management is generated. Waste management and resource conservation strategies are prepared in state-of-the-art level however implementation and future improvement of the current situation is crucial. Some examples in waste prevention and management for better tourism, waste and resource management are provided in the paper as outcomes from Horizon2020 project "Urban Strategies for Waste Management in Tourist Cities". The policy and tools based on information gathered by scientists, municipal and NGOs experience (e.g. separation of bio-waste in catering industries, "sin-wastes" as from the bars, nightclubs and smoker places, reuse of unnecessary items that can serve for others and many more) are described. In addition, regulatory instruments (e.g. ban of plastic bags, reduction of allowed bio-waste in landfilling), economic instruments (taxes) and voluntary agreements (e.g. deposit systems; cleaning actions by volunteers) might be used to implement and elaborate the situation within environmental management and prevention practices in tourist metropolitan cities. Food waste prevention, beach and littoral management, special practices for festival waste and large amount specific waste generating facilities (e.g., entertainment industry, cruises etc.) are of high importance. The future outlook may be concentrated on digitalizing of waste flows and using the "big data" concept for better and smarter waste management.

Existing schemes of solid waste handling have been improved implementing advanced systems for recovery and reuse of various materials. Nowadays, the 'zero waste' concept is becoming more topical through the reduction of disposed waste. Recovery of metals, nutrients and other materials that can be returned to the material cycles still remain as a challenge for future. Landfill mining (LFM) is one of the approaches that can deal with former dumpsites, and derived materials may become important for circular economy within the concept 'beyond the zero waste'. Perspectives of material recovery can include recycling of critical industrial metals, including rare earth elements (REEs). The LFM projects performed in the Baltic Region along with a conventional source separation of iron-scrap, plastics etc. have shown that the potential of fine-grained fractions (including clay and colloidal matter) of excavated waste have considerably large amounts of potentially valuable metals and distinct REEs. In this paper analytical screening studies are discussed extending the understanding of element content in fine fraction of waste derived from excavated, separated and screened waste in a perspective of circular economy. Technological feasibility was evaluated by using modified sequential extraction technique where easy extractable amount of metals can be estimated. Results revealed that considerable concentrations of Mn (418-823 mg/kg), Ni (41-84 mg/kg), Co (10.7-19.3 mg/kg) and Cd (1.0-3.0 mg/kg) were detected in fine fraction (<10 mm) of waste sampled from Hogbytorp landfill, while Cr (49-518 mg/kg) and Pb (30-264 mg/kg) were found in fine fraction (<10 mm) of waste from Torma landfill revealing wide heterogeneity of tested samples. Waste should become a utilizable resource closing the loop of anthropogenic material cycle as the hidden potential of valuable materials in dumps is considerable. (C) 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Landfills are considered as places where the life cycle of products ends and materialshave been “disposed forever”. The landfill mining (LFM) approach can deal with formerdumpsites and this material may become important for circular economy perspectiveswithin the concept “Beyond the zero waste”. Potential material recovery should includeperspectives of recycling of critical industrial metals where rare Earth elements (REEs)are playing more and more important role. Real-time applied LFM projects in the BalticRegion have shown the potential of fine-grained fractions (including clay and colloidalmatter) of excavated waste as storage of considerably large amounts of valuable metalsand REEs. Analytical screening studies have extended a bit further the understanding offine fraction contents of excavated, separated and screened waste in a circular economyperspective. The Swedish Institute and Latvian Research Program “Res Prod” supportedthe research.

For the next century to come, one of the biggest challenges is to provide the mankind with relevant and sufficient resources. Recovery of secondary resources plays a significant role. Industrial processes developed to regain minerals for commodity production in a circular economy become ever more important in the European Union and worldwide. Landfill mining (LFM) constitutes an important technological toolset of processes that regain resources and redistribute them with an accompanying reduction of hazardous influence of environmental contamination and other threats for human health hidden in former dump sites and landfills. This review paper is devoted to LFM problems, historical development and driving paradigms of LFM from 'classical hunting for valuables' to 'perspective in ecosystem revitalization'. The main goal is to provide a description of historical experience and link it to more advanced concept of a circular economy. The challenge is to adapt the existing knowledge to make decisions in accordance with both, economic feasibility and ecosystems revitalization aspects. (C) 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

For decades, significant work has been conducted regarding plastic waste by dealing with rejected materials in waste masses through their accumulation, sorting and recycling. Important political and technical challenges are involved, especially with respect to landfilled waste. Plastic is popular and, notwithstanding decrease policies, it will remain a material widely used in most economic sectors. However, questions of plastic waste recycling in the contemporary world cannot be solved without knowing the material, which can be achieved by careful sampling, analysis and quantification. Plastic is heterogeneous, but usually all plastic waste is jointly handled for recycling and incineration. Separation before processing waste through the analytical approach must be applied. Modern landfill mining and site clean-up projects in contemporary waste management systems require comprehensive material studies ranging from the macro-characterization of waste masses to a more detailed analysis of hazardous constituents and properties from an energy calorific standpoint-where, among other methods, thermogravimetric research coupled with life cycle assessment (LCA) and economic assessment is highly welcomed.

Geophysical studies in mapping and geoenvironmental applications for screening purposes are widely applied in Latvia. Ground-penetrating radar (GPR) as the one method from geophysical toolbox is a non-invasive and non-destructive way where pulsed electromagnetic signal is recorded as scattering from subsurface objects. Aim of two described screening studies was to analyse potential advantages of GPR use for mapping bottom sediments and topography in two lakes and pinpoint challenges to overcome during works. Both lakes are relatively deep and of sub-glacial origin that became lakes after the ice retreat from Baltic region. Characterization of bottom sediments as well as full core description of upper limnic layers for comparison with GPR signals were performed. Major results show that GPR, coring and laboratory analysis can be used simultaneously, however, ground penetration radar sometimes fails to recognize full picture needed for geoenvironmental application needs. Proper treatment of data nevertheless diminish the necessity of dense coring in lakes when budgets are strict.

Dumps and landfills are the end place of unwanted material and disposed products. Burried resources may be landfill mined and environmental pollution diminished. The problem is lack of information on unknown dump sites of former times – there remote sensing and traditional geodesy, proximal sensing techniques could be used. Near surface geophysical methods are valuable for screening of areas where drilling is limited due to technological limitations and anthropogenic unhomogenousity of material. The aim of this study was to determine whether screening of magnetometry and geoelectrical methods may be useful for old burried dumps recognition. Protonmagnetometer was used in Eastern Latvia to detect burried dump in forest, already covered by soil and vegetation. Induced polarisation and electric resistivity research was done in Southern Sweden for the macro-content analysis of dump hills composed of glass industry residuals and construction waste mixture. Surveying helped to determine macroproperties such as geomorphology and physical type of material underneath the surface. Results allowed spatially characterize dumpsite masses (location and dimensions) and identify the internal structure of a these sites. This is valuable information in order to estimate the material recovery potential of landfills.

Industrial and strategic significance of platinum group elements (PGEs)-Os, Ir, Ru, Rh, Pd, Pt-makes them irreplaceable; furthermore, some PGEs are used by investors as "safe heaven" assets traded in the commodity markets. This review analyzes PGEs from various aspects: their place in the geosphere, destiny in the anthroposphere, and opportunity in the economy considering interactions among the exploration, recycling of urban ores, trade markets, speculative rhetoric, and changes required for successful technological progress towards the implementation of sustainability. The global market of PGEs is driven by several concerns: costs for extraction/recycling; logistics; the demand of industries; policies of waste management. Diversity of application and specific chemical properties, as well as improper waste management, make the recycling of PGEs complicated. The processing approach depends on composition and the amount of available waste material, and so therefore urban ores are a significant source of PGEs, especially when the supply of elements is limited by geopolitical or market tensions. Recycling potential of urban ores is particularly important in a long-term view disregarding short-term economic fluctuations, and it should influence investment flows in the advancement of innovation.

Liver is one of the primary and largest metabolic organs in the body. The function of the liver can be disturbed and damaged by paracetamol and liver damage can be prevented with papaya (Carica papaya L.). The purpose of this study was to know the effects of C. papaya juice on plasma AST/ALT level and liver histopathology in paracetamol-induced mice. Amount 25 Balb-C mice (Mus musculus) were divided into five treatment groups, there were normal, negative control, papaya juice dose (200, 400, 600) mg kg-1 bw-1 groups. The treatment was carried out for 7 d and then all mice (without normal groups) was induced by paracetamol. On the 8th d, blood was collected and all mice were sacrificed. The materials used in this study include C. papaya juice, CMC Na, paracetamol, AST and ALT reagents, Hematoxylin-Eosin and used Experimental Laboratory methods. One Way ANOVA and Kruskal Wallis with a confidence level of 95 % and followed by a post hoc test (LSD) to determine differences between groups. Showed that pretreatment with papaya juice could prevent liver damage and inhibit the increase of plasma AST/ALT level and papaya juice dose 600 mg kg-1 bw-1 had significant effects on plasma AST/ALT level and liver histopathology in paracetamol-induced mice. Carica papaya L. juice can be used as a hepatoprotective agent. 

The purpose of this study is to perform the techno-economic analysis of photovoltaic system utilization for lighting and cooling of Ferry Ro/Ro 500 GT. The world is facing a dilemma of increasing dependence on fossil energy with decreasing supply. This situation must be anticipated by all sectors by energy efficiency (EE) and utilizing renewable energy (RE). Especially for RE in the transportation sector, ships as consumers of oil energy can also take advantage of solar energy sources, for example for lighting and cooling. For that purpose, five steps must be taken. First, determine the design specifications. Second, determine the specifications of components of the PV system. Third, calculate the power required for lighting equipment. Fourth, calculate the power required for the cooling system. Fifth, make an investment comparison for propulsion systems between diesel engines and photovoltaic systems. The results show that the energy required for lighting and cooling system as well as for propulsion systems can be placed in the deck area of 148.8 m(2) for all system components, such as; PV modules, charge controllers, batteries, and inverter. This study can provide an overview of the use of PV system in designing the environmentally new or renovation ships.

Contamination associated with metals is a critical concern related to their toxicity, persistence, and bio-accumulation. Trace elements are partitioned into several chemical forms, which some are more labile during fluctuations in the environment. Studying the distribution of metals between the different chemical fractions contributes to assess their bioavailability and to identify their potential risk of contamination to surrounding environments. This study concerns the speciation of metals (Pb, Cr, Ni, Zn and Fe) from sediments coming out from Malmfjärden bay, Sweden. The aim was to assess the potential risk of metal pollution during present and future dredging as well as while using dredged sediments in beneficial uses. The Tessier speciation procedure was chosen, and the results showed that low concentrations of metals were associated with the exchangeable fraction. In contrast, the major concentrations were linked to the residual part. The risk indexes (contamination factor and risk assessment code) showed that, during dredging activities, there is a low concern of pollution for Cr, Ni and Fe and a medium risk for Pb and Zn. Additionally, in all elements, the sum of non-residual concentrations was below the Swedish limits for using dredged sediments in sensitive lands. The findings suggested that the investigated metals in Malmfjärden sediments are related to low risks of spreading during using in beneficial uses.

Millions of tons of bottom sediments are dredged annually all over the world. Ports and bays need to extract the sediments to guarantee the navigation levels or remediate the aquatic ecosystem. The removed material is commonly disposed of in open oceans or landfills. These disposal methods are not in line with circular-economy goals and additionally are unsuitable due to their legal and environmental compatibility. Recovery of valuables represents a way to eliminate dumping and contributes towards the sustainable extraction of secondary raw materials. Nevertheless, the recovery varies on a case-by-case basis and depends on the sediment components. Therefore, the first step is to analyse and identify the sediment composition and properties. Malmfjärden is a shallow semi-enclosed bay located in Kalmar, Sweden. Dredging of sediments is required to recuperate the water level. This study focuses on characterizing the sediments, pore water and surface water from the bay to uncover possible sediment recovery paths and define the baseline of contamination in the water body. The results showed that the bay had high amounts of nitrogen (170–450 µg L−1 ), leading to eutrophication problems. The sediments mainly comprised small size particle material (silt, clay and sand proportions of 62 %–79 %, 14 %–20 %, 7 %–17 %, respectively) and had a medium–high level of nitrogen (7400–11 000 mg kg−1 ). Additionally, the sediments had little presence of organic pollutants and low–medium concentration of metals or metalloids. The characterization of the sediments displays a potential use in less sensitive lands such as in industrial and commercial areas where the sediments can be employed as construction material or as plant-growing substrate (for ornamental gardens or vegetation beside roads).

Worldwide, sediments are dredged from water bodies to guarantee proper water levels and remediate aquatic ecosystems. Dredged sediments contain metals that could interfere with recycling if the concentrations overpass permissible limits. Washing of elements from sediments represents a technique to decrease the concentration of metals, and it could introduce a new source of elements. The current study aimed to employ ethylenediamine-tetraacetic acid (EDTA) and ethylenediamine-disuccinic acid (EDDS) and investigate the effect of operational parameters (concentration and pH) on the chemical extraction of metals from dredged sediments. Core sediments were extracted from sampling stations around Malmfjärden bay, Sweden. The results suggested that lead, zinc and copper were the elements with higher extraction rates, followed by arsenic and nickel. Chromium was poorly extracted. EDTA was more efficient than EDDS in dissolving the elements. Moreover, acidic conditions offered higher extraction rates for As using both chelators and for Pb employing EDTA. The 0.05 M concentration presented a higher mean extraction rate than 0.01 M for Cu, Cr and Ni for EDTA and EDDS. The findings in this study suggest that sediment washing is a promising technique to decrease metal concentrations in sediments and enhancing the feasibility to use the material for beneficial uses.

In common sense, a landfill is a place where the life cycle of products ends. Landfill mining (LFM) mostly deals with former dumpsites and derived material may have a significant importance for the circular economy. Deliverables of recently applied LFM projects in Sweden and Estonia have revealed the potential and problems for material recovery. There are 75-100 thousand old landfills and dumps in the Baltic Sea Region, and they pose environmental risks to soil, water and air by pollution released from leachate and greenhouse gas emissions. Excavation of landfills is potential solution for solving these problems, and at the same time, there are perspectives to recover valuable lands and materials, save expenses for final coverage of the landfills and aftercare control. The research project "Closing the Life Cycle of Landfills-Landfill Mining in the Baltic Sea Region for Future" included investigation at four case studies in Estonia and Sweden: Kudjape, Torma, Hogbytorp and Vika landfills. Added value of this research project is characterization of waste fine fraction material, determination of concentration for most critical and rare earth elements. The main results showed that both, coarse and fine, fractions of waste might have certain opportunities of recovery.

Drinking water of good quality, in enough quantity at right time start to be very scarce in the world. At the same time perfect drinking water is used to flushing toilet, cleansing of sewage pipes, washing of industry floors, firefighting, washing of cars and trucks etc. Also agriculture is suffering of lack of water for irrigation during dry periods and it is necessary to use drinking water or river/lake water of high quality to get rich harvest of good quality. In the future drinking water must just be used as food stuff and not wasted in the society. People must, since they are children, be trained to respect the drinking water and not waste a single drop. Also, storm water can be considered as a source of fresh water if it collected and recycled properly. Recycling/reuse of treated/reclaimed wastewater will help to mitigate part of the increasing water demands in the society and secondary water can be used in non-potable end paths such as agriculture, industry or even recharging water aquifers.  Reclaimed/technical or recycled water for non-potable uses such as flushing toilets, irrigation and other uses will be very important in modern society in the future.

The Landfill mining was introduced in research in Sweden for more than three and a half decades ago. During recent years, the focus has been on the glass dumps in the Kingdom of Crystal in southeastern Sweden. Mapping of the dumps, test pit excavations, sieving and sorting of the glass masses, characterization, laboratory extraction of the metals in the glass was performed as well as measurements of radioactivity done. The polluted soil underneath the removed glass masses was treated by remediation. At one of places at the Kingdom of Crystal a phytoremediation/tourist park was established in Orrefors including a summer glasswork for tourist activities.

Environmental pollution and health threats as well as scarcity of raw materials, water, food and energy are among the main challenges our world are now facing. Simultaneously, landfills and open dumpsites still are the dominant global waste disposal option even with their long term environmental impacts in case of greenhouse gases and contaminated leachates. In this thesis, landfill mining is suggested as a tool that should be included in an enhanced circular economy model (repair, reuse and recycle + extract and recovery) by considering the extraction/recovery of the lost materials in landfills and dumpsites as secondary resources.

Characterization data (composition and physicochemical properties) is considered as a vital source for information for: i. the valorization of excavated wastes, ii. to explore potential hazards and iii. as an important tool for theassessment of the waste management systems and policies. In this thesis,excavated wastes from a classic landfill (Högbytorp in Sweden), a landfill buildup according to the European Directive requirements (Torma in Estonia) andhazardous glass dumpsite (Pukeberg in Sweden) was characterized as a centralstep in exploring the potential of recovering of valuables. In addition, the extraction of trace elements from waste glass and different finefractions were also investigated. The reduction-melting method was developedto extract hazardous concentrations of trace elements from old art and crystalglasses with more than (99%) of recovery of Pb, Cd and As. While threechelating agents (EDTA, DTPA and NTA) were used to extract Pb, Cd, Asand Zn from fine fraction (<2 mm) sampled from Pukeberg glasswork with anextraction efficiency of (40%). Besides, the fractionations of the metals Cu, Znand Cr in the fine fractions (<10 mm) excavated from Högbytorp and Tormalandfills were studied by using a modified sequential extraction procedure.

The findings of this thesis highlighted the need to consider the dumped wastesas secondary resources and landfills and dumpsites as future bank accounts offuture raw materials instead of being burden to the human health and theenvironment.

More than 34 old glasswork sites in the southeastern part of Sweden pose a permanent threat to human and environmental health due to the presence of toxic metals in open dumps with glass waste. The possibility of leaching of metals from different fractions of the disposed waste needed to be assessed. In the present investigation, leachate from fine fraction (soil plus glass particles < 2 mm) was characterized as following: pH (7.3), TOC (< 2%), organic content (4.4%), moisture content (9.7), COD (163 mg/kg) and trace elements content, being the values in accordance to the Swedish guidelines for landfilling of inert materials. However, very high metals content was found in the fine fraction as well as in all colors of the glass fraction (≥ 2 mm), whose values were compatible to hazardous waste landfill class. Tests with Lepidium sativum growing in the fine fraction as substrate revealed chronic toxicity expressed as inhibition of root biomass growth in 11 out of 15 samples. Additionally, leachate from fine fractions posed acute toxicity to genetically modified E. coli (Toxi-Chromotest). This study highlights the importance of combining physicochemical characterization with toxicity tests for both solid waste and leachate obtained from different waste fractions for proper hazardousness assessment supporting decision making on remediation demands.

More than 34 old glasswork sites in the southeastern part of Sweden pose a permanent threat to human and environmental health due to the presence of toxic trace elements in open dumps with glass waste. The possibility of leaching of trace elements from different fractions of the disposed waste needed to be assessed. In the present investigation, leachate from a mixture of soil and waste glass of particle sizes of less than 2mm (given the name fine fraction) was characterized by analyzing the pH (7.3), total organic content (TOC<2%), organic matter content (4.4%), moisture content (9.7%), chemical oxygen demand (COD, 163mg/kg) and trace elements content, being the values in accordance to the Swedish guidelines for landfilling of inert materials. However, very high trace elements content was found in the fine fraction as well as in all colors of waste glass, whose values were compatible to hazardous waste landfill class. Tests with Lepidium sativum growing in the fine fraction as substrate revealed chronic toxicity expressed as inhibition of root biomass growth in 11 out of 15 samples. Additionally, leachate from fine fractions posed acute toxicity to genetically modified E. coli (Toxi-Chromotest). This study highlights the importance of combining physicochemical characterization with toxicity tests for both solid waste and leachate obtained from different waste fractions for proper hazardousness assessment supporting decision making on remediation demands.

Old glassworks siteshave been always associated with contamination by different trace elements likePb, Cd, As, Zn and others. The mixture of soil and waste glass of particlesizes <2mmat one of the oldest Swedish glassworks (the Pukeberg) was studiedby analyzing the trace elements content, organic content (3.6%) and pH (7.4).The results showed hazardous concentrations of Pb (1525 mg/kg), Ba (1312mg/kg), Sb (128 mg/kg), Cd (36 mg/kg), As (118 mg/kg), Zn (1154mg/kg) and Co(263 mg/kg) exceeded the Swedish guidelines of contaminated soil. Batchchemical extraction by the chelating agents EDTA, DTPA and the biodegradableNTA were performed to study the effect of chelating agent concentration and mixingtime on the extraction efficiencies by following a Box-Wilson design ofexperiments. The results displayed good extraction efficiencies (less than 41%)of Pb, Cd, As and Zn by the EDTA, DTPA and NTA, which seemed depends on thetype of chelator. In addition, high correlation between the extraction efficiencies,the chelators concentration and mixing time was found based on the statisticaland experimental results.

At the southeastern part of Sweden, old art and crystal waste glass has been identified as a hazardous waste due to high weight concentrations of Pb (32.398%), Cd (0.085%) and As (1.976%). The reduction-melting technique was used to investigate the extraction of these trace elements from powder waste glass of particle size <1 mm. Following a factorial design technique, the experimental results of the reduction-melting method showed that 99.9% of Pb, 100% of Cd and 99% of As could be extracted. For a batch of 10 g powder waste glass, the found experimental and theoretical optimum operating conditions were 1100 ^oC of melting temperature, 5 g of Na₂CO₃, 2 g of carbon and 120 min of melting time. The reduction-melting method displayed promising results which might help in recycling the extracted trace elements and glass compared to the current used solution of landfilling as hazardous wastes. 

Cement and glass industries are facing a lot of challenges due to the high greenhouse gases emissions, the intensive use of energy and the intensive use of the earth’s natural resources. The current situation of discarding waste glass to landfills is also not offering an environmental friendly management for the waste glass, due to the nonbiodegradable form of the waste glass. However, the chemical composition and the pozzolanic properties of waste glass are encouraging for the use of this waste in the cement and concrete industries and to provide an environmental friendly solution for the glass and cement industries. This paper reviews the different uses of waste glass in cement and concrete and the effect of the glass properties on the performance and durability of the produce cement and concrete.

The present research studies the characterisation and the physico-chemical properties of an excavated fine fraction (<10 mm) from a Swedish landfill, the Högbytorp. The results showed that the fine fraction represents 38% by mass of the total excavated wastes and it contains mainly soil-type materials and minerals. Higher concentrations of zinc, copper, barium and chromium were found with concentrations higher than the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for contaminated soil. The found moisture and organic contents of the fine fraction were 23.5% and 16.6%, respectively. The analysed calorific value (1.7 MJ kg-1), the potential of CH4 (4.74 m3 t-1 dry matter) and Total Organic Carbon (TOC) (5.6%) were low and offer low potential of energy. Sieving the fine fraction further showed that 80% was smaller than 2 mm. The fine represents a major fraction at any landfill (40%–70%), therefore, characterising the properties of this fraction is essential to find the potential of reusing/recycling or safely redisposing.

Landfills represent a continuous environmental threat due to the emission of different greenhouse gases, which are mainly responsible for the climate changes, and the contaminated leachate that affects the surface and ground water recipients. The circular economy approach appeared as a useful solution to reduce the depletion of the Earth’s natural resources and the environmental risk effects by considering all of the lost resources like wastes including the landfills as potential secondary resources. It is well known that characterizing the composition of landfill waste is an essential step in specifying the recycling methods. In the current research the waste composition at one of the first EU regulations-compliant sanitary landfills (the Torma landfill in Estonia) was studied. The results showed that the fine fraction (<20 mm) represented 53% of the total excavated waste materials while the waste to energy fraction (plastics, woods etc.) was the highest within the coarse fraction (>20 mm). The present work emphasized that mining landfills can be a good solution either for extracting primary raw materials like metals, as a source for recovering energy, or for acquiring landfill space.

The historical contamination of Smålands glass industry by hazardous concentrations of different trace elements (such as Pb, As, Zn, Cd and others) is a fact that has been approved by many researchers. These studies covered the situation of the glassworks contamination from different angles. However, the recommended solution by the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency is landfilling. Dumping these masses means, on the first hand, losing huge amounts of the Earth natural resources as wastes and, on the second hand, losing any future opportunity of recycling or reusing due to mixing these masses with other hazardous wastes generated by different sectors. In this paper, we are trying to review and highlight the results obtained by some of the already published studies in this field to identify the gap and challenges of recycling or reusing options.

Dredging activities are necessary to maintain the navigation depth of harbors and channels. Additionally,dredging can prevent the loss of water bodies. A large amount of extracted sediments is produced around theworld. Removed material is widely disposed at open seas or landfills. Much of the dredged material is pollutedand is classified as unsuitable for open-sea disposal. In Sweden, many dredging activities are taking placenowadays like that in Oskarshamn harbor, Inre harbor Norrköping municipality and Malmfjärden bay inKalmar. In this review, the potential of phytoremediation as a treatment method is discussed with focus onsuggested methods for reusing the treated sediments. Recycling or reusing of dredged and treated sedimentswill preserve Earth natural resources as well as reduce diffusion of contaminants to the environment.

Mining landfills and open dumpsites is associated with (40-70% by mass) fine fraction of particle sizes less than 20 or 10 mm. Soil and trace elements of considerable concentrations typically dominate the composition of this fraction. In the present paper, a modified three steps sequential extraction procedure was used to fractionate Cu, Zn and Cr in the fine fraction of waste sampled from Högbytorp (Sweden) and Torma (Estonia) landfills. The results showed that the major concentrations of Cu (98.8 and 98.6 wt%) and Cr (98.5% and 98.4 wt %) in fines from Högbytorp and Torma landfills, respectively. These data were found associated to the residual fraction. Noticeable concentrations of Cu and Cr were also found associated within the water -soluble fraction, which could be regarded as a potential risk. The Zn displayed different behavior by distributing in all the sequential extraction fractions in the fine fractions from the two landfills. Specifying the metals content using this method is essential to explore the valorization as well as the potential environmental risks by these fines fractions.

Context: Tuberculosis is an infectious disease that highly depends on the immune response. Purple leaves (Graptophyllum pictum (L) Griff) has an immune-modulatory activity. Aims: The purpose of this study was to analyze the effect of purple leaf methanol extract (EMDU) on the expression of IFN-γ in mice lung tissue infected with Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Materials and Methods: M. tuberculosis was infected in mice. The EMDU was given with dose (1.703, 3.406, 6.812) mg kg-1 BW-1 for 14 d after infection. The expression of IFN-γ protein (expression obtained from mice's lung tissue) was examined using immunohistochemical examination using IFN-γ anti monoclonal antibodies. Calculations performed on immunoreactive cells showed positive expression and reddish-brown appearance on the cytoplasm. Calculated as many as ten fields of view using a light microscope at 400 times magnification, then the mean value is taken. The mean value of the number of immunoreactive cells is included as data. Data analysis by one way ANOVA and Duncan test. Results: The treatment group showed that IFN-γ expression in mice tuberculosis was significantly increased (p < 0.05) of EMDU. Conclusions: Administration of EMDU increase of IFN-γ expression in mice tuberculosis. 

Several Gentle Remediation Options (GRO), e.g. plant-based options (phytoremediation), singly and combined with soil amendments, can be simultaneously efficient for degrading organic pollutants and either stabilizing or extracting trace elements (TE). Here, a 5-month greenhouse trial was performed to test the efficiency of Medicago sativa L., singly and combined with a compost addition (30% w/w), to treat soils contaminated by petroleum hydrocarbons (PHC), Co and Pb collected at an auto scrap yard. After five months, total soil Pb significantly decreased in the compost-amended soil planted with M. sativa, but not total soil Co. Compost incorporation into the soil promoted PHC degradation, M. sativa growth and survival, and shoot Pb concentrations (3.8 mg/kg DW). Residual risk assessment after the phytoremediation trial showed a positive effect of compost amendment on plant growth and earthworm development. The O2 uptake by soil microorganisms was lower in the compost-amended soil, suggesting a decrease in microbial activity. This study underlined the benefits of the phytoremediation option based on M. sativa cultivation and compost amendment for remediating PHC and Pb contaminated soils.

Underground storage tanks used for auto oil spill waste contain many hazardous materials, including polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) trace elements. These compounds pose a significant threat to the environment and affect negatively human health. The aim of this study was to characterize the soil of a former auto scrap yards in which oil spill tank leakage occurred in Sweden. The soil samples were collected from an area of 5 m² around an oil the tank which was highly contaminated with petroleum hydrocarbons (PHC) and trace elements (cobalt and lead). Another soil samples were collected from a nearby area that was not contaminated by PHC and they were considered as controls. The characterization of these soil samples was performed using two approaches. Analysis of the relevant physico-chemical soil properties included texture, organic matter, contaminant concentration and pH, while biological analyses were performed using three independent ecotoxicological tests with plant (Lepidium sativum), earthworm (Eisenia fetida) and soil microorganisms. Toxicity tests showed that contaminants had strongly negative effects on earthworm’s development and L. sativum shoots dry biomass in both PHC contaminated and control soils. These two parameters were the most sensitive in reflecting toxicity of study soils. Oxygen uptake rate (OUR) in aqueous phase was four times higher than that of the solid phase even though a similar trend was observed in both phases (aqueous and solid). Moreover, microorganism’s respiration was high in PHC contaminated soils in comparison to control soils due to the mineralization of readily available OM and/or organic pollutants as well as the inhibitory effect of TE on soil respiration. The results clearly demonstrated that combination of chemical analyses with three toxicity tests was appropriate to characterize mixed PHC and TE contaminated soils.

A pilot scale experiment was conducted to investigate the aided-phytoextraction of metals and the aided-phytodegradation of petroleum hydrocarbons (PHC) in a co-contaminated soil. First, this soil was amended with compost (10% w/w) and assembled into piles (Unp-10%C). Then, a phyto-cap of Medicago sativa L. either in monoculture (MS-10%C) or co-cropped with Helianthus annuus L. as companion planting (MSHA-10%C) was sown on the topsoil. Physico-chemical parameters and contaminants in the soil and its leachates were measured at the beginning and the end of the first growth season (after five months). In parallel, residual soil ecotoxicity was assessed using the plant species Lepidium sativum L. and the earthworm Eisenia fetida Savigny, 1826, while the leachate ecotoxicity was assessed using Lemna minor L. After 5 months, PH C10-C40, PAH-L, PAH-M PAH-H, Pb and Cu concentrations in the MS-10%C soil were significantly reduced as compared to the Unp-10% C soil. Metal uptake by alfalfa was low but their translocation to shoots was high for Mn, Cr, Co and Zn (transfer factor (TF) >1), except for Cu and Pb. Alfalfa in monoculture reduced electrical conductivity, total organic C and Cu concentration in the leachate while pH and dissolved oxygen increased. Alfalfa co-planting with sunflower did not affect the extraction of inorganic contaminants from the soil, the PAH (M and H) degradation and was less efficient for PH C10-C40 and PAH-L as compared to alfalfa monoculture. The co-planting reduced shoot and root Pb concentrations. The residual soil ecotoxicity after 5 months showed a positive effect of co-planting on L. sativum shoot dry weight (DW) yield. However, high contaminant concentrations in soil and leachate still inhibited the L. sativum root DW yield, earthworm development, and L. minor growth rate. (C) 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Landfills and dumpsites have been the ultimate end of life sinks for various materials and products. As such, they are considered rich stocks of secondary raw materials for the circular economy. However, most of them are non-sanitary as they lack protective measures against environmental contamination. Over the years, the need to exploit the resource potential of landfills as well as to mitigate their contamination problems, among other factors, has led to the concept of landfill mining, resulting in a number of mainly pilot scale mining of landfills and dumps globally. In southeastern Sweden for instance, where there are over forty old, contaminated glass dumps, a number of remedial dumpsite excavations have been going on, with eventual landfilling of excavated materials in sanitary landfills. Hence, based on the Swedish situation, this study presents three scenarios about: contaminated materials in non-sanitary dumps as they currently stand; ongoing material excavations with subsequent landfilling; and material excavations coupled with materials recovery towards reduced landfilling. The third scenario is presented as more suitable from the circular economy perspective. The scenario is thus discussed in terms of technological implications of the process from identification of concealed valuable materials in dumps to their excavation, sorting, temporal storage, valorization and eventual resource recovery. In addition, legal implications as well as potential social, economic and environmental barriers against the scenario’s implementation are discussed. Finally, the study provides recommendations that would be useful in decision making surrounding the management of contaminated and non-sanitary dumpsites.

The ‘Glasriket’ of Sweden’s Småland region is characterized by an array of landfillsand dumpsites of glass and other raw material wastes from old glassworks. Most ofthe dumpsites contain heavy metals with leaching capabilities to soil and groundwater. As these metals could be potential resources that could be recovered into theresource loop, the characterization of these wastes can provide necessary informationabout the resource recovery potential. The current investigation focuses on the firststages by quantifying the amounts of selected metals (Ba, Cr and Zn) in the glassdeposit at Madesjö dumpsite as a case. The dump was sampled at nine different pointsand two levels per point. The samples were subjected to X-ray Fluorescence scanning(XRF) and leaching tests with further analyses of metals using ICP. According to theinvestigation, the highest metal contents in the solid phase were observed in Zn(average of 4515 mg/kg) while the lowest were observed in Cr (average of 72 mg/kg).In the liquid phase, the average metal concentrations were observed to be 0.37 mg/kg,0.02 mg/kg and 0.23 mg/kg for Ba, Cr and Zn respectively. These, however, are not inreadily available form, and so further investigations need to be done in order to findcost-effective techniques for their extraction. On the other hand, further investigationsneed to be done to ascertain the leaching potential by altering such leachingparameters as contact time and liquid to solid ratio.

An old glass dumpsite in southern Sweden was mapped and investigated to locate

glass abundance zones (“hotspots”) and understand physicochemical parametres of

the waste. Global Positioning System (GPS) was used for mapping the site while a

geophysical method of Electrical Resistivity was used for detecting glass hotspots in

the dump. Test pits were excavated and samples taken, after which hand sorting,

sieving and X-Ray Fluorescence (XRF) scanning of the waste were used for

physicochemical properties. Geophysical mapping was found to be a feasible nondestructive

tool in locating glass hotspots. In terms of composition, glass was found

to be the most abundant fraction at 90% average from all 4 sampling points. From

particle size distribution, particles > 11.3 mm were more abundant (75% average)

than particles < 11.3 mm. XRF scanning yielded As, Cd and Pb concentrations of 3,700

mg/kg, 500 mg/kg and 5,300 mg/kg, respectively. In conclusion, it is possible to locate

glass hotspots and excavate them carefully in readiness for metal extraction while

avoiding the need for complicated sorting post-excavation.

Physico-chemical characteristics of waste, particularly fine fraction (FF), from an old crystal glass waste dump in Sweden were studied to assess recycling or disposal alternatives. Hand-sorting of the waste indicated glass content of 44.1% while sieving established the FF as a more soil-like mix of glass and other materials constituting 33.3% of all excavated waste. The FF was around neutral pH with 24.4% moisture content, low values of Total Dissolved Solids, Dissolved Organic Carbon and fluorides, but hazardous concentrations of As, Cd, Pb and Zn according to the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency guidelines. While the FF leached metals in low concentrations at neutral pH, it leached considerably during digestion with nitric acid, implying leaching risks at low pH. Thus, the waste requires safe storage in hazardous waste class ‘bank account’ storage cells to avoid environmental contamination as metal recovery and other recycling strategies for the glass waste are being developed. The study could fill the information gap regarding preservation of potential resources in the on-going, fast-paced excavation and re-landfilling of heavy metal contaminated materials in the region.

Around former glass factories in south eastern Sweden, there are dozens of dumps whose radioactivity and physico-chemical properties were not investigated previously. Thus, radiometric and physico-chemical characteristics of waste at Madesjö glass dump were studied to evaluate pre-recycling storage requirements and potential radiological and environmental risks. The material was sieved, hand-sorted, leached and scanned with X-Ray Fluorescence (XRF). External dose rates and activity concentrations of Naturally Occurring Radioactive Materials from ²³⁸U, ²³²Th series and ⁴⁰K were also measured coupled with a radiological risk assessment. Results showed that the waste was 95% glass and dominated by fine fractions (< 11.3 mm) at 43.6%. The fine fraction had pH 7.8, 2.6% moisture content, 123 mg kg^-1 Total Dissolved Solids, 37.2 mg kg^-1 Dissolved Organic Carbon and 10.5 mg kg^-1 fluorides. Compared with Swedish EPA guidelines, the elements As, Cd, Pb and Zn were in hazardous concentrations while Pb leached more than the limits for inert and non-hazardous wastes. With ⁴⁰K activity concentration up to 3000 Bq kg^-1, enhanced external dose rates of ⁴⁰K were established (0.20 mSv h^-1) although no radiological risk was found since both External Hazard Index (H_ex) and Gamma Index (I_γ) were < 1. The glass dump needs remediation and storage of the waste materials under a safe hazardous waste class ‘Bank Account’ storage cell as a secondary resource for potential future recycling.

This study investigates the potential for Electrical Resistivity Tomography (ERT) to detect buried glass ‘hotspots’ in a glass waste dump based on results from an open glass dump investigated initially. This detection potential is vital for excavation and later use of buried materials as secondary resources. After ERT, test pits (TPs) were excavated around suspected glass hotspots and physico-chemical characterisation of the materials was done. Hotspots were successfully identified as regions of high resistivity (>8000 Ωm) and were thus confirmed by TPs which indicated mean glass composition of 87.2% among samples (up to 99% in some). However, high discrepancies in material resistivities increased the risk for introduction of artefacts, thus increasing the degree of uncertainty with depth, whereas similarities in resistivity between granite bedrock and crystal glass presented data misinterpretation risks. Nevertheless, suitable survey design, careful field procedures and caution exercised by basing data interpretations primarily on TP excavation observations generated good results particularly for near-surface materials, which is useful since glass waste dumps are inherently shallow. Thus, ERT could be a useful technique for obtaining more homogeneous excavated glass and other materials for use as secondary resources in metal extraction and other waste recycling techniques while eliminating complicated and often costly waste sorting needs.

Glass waste dumps from crystal glass production is an health issue due to the occurrence of antimony, arsenic, cadmium and lead in crystal glass. Recovery of those elements could both decrease pollution and recycle metals in the circular economy. Pyrometallurgy is a potential recovery method, yet limited by high energy consumption. Here we tested a lower-energy alternative in which glass is mechanically activated in a ball mill and leached with nitric acid. Results show that mechanical activation destabilised the glass structure and resulted in 78% lead extraction during leaching at 95 °C. Temperature had the most signifcant efect on extraction, whereas acid concentration, from 0.5 to 3 M, and leaching time, from 0.5 to 12 h, had insignifcant efects. In each experiment, 75% of the fnal extracted amount was achieved within 30 min. The study demonstrates potential for lead extraction from glass waste at lower acid concentration, shorter leaching time and lower temperature, of 95 °C, than traditional pyrometallurgical extraction, typically operating at 1100 °C.

The urbanization and increasing growth of planet’s population accumulates significant volume of disposed waste

as well as increases risks on human health and environmental safety. Landfill systems are the dynamic, living

in space and time, potentially harmful entities that must be managed in as careful and smart way as possible.

There are many studies related to landfill emissions such as leachates and methane. However, there is a need for

advanced understanding of landfill hydrological regime and risks related to climate change and associated changes

of hydrological cycle. The comprehensive studies about the urban hydrology are available; however, application

to landfill management is fragmentary and inconsistent in several aspects. Landfill in long term has an impact on

hydrological cycle. The heterogeneous land surface is one of aspects; however, there are still unanswered questions

about the urban environment impact on water balance components. The aim of this study is to describe fundamentals

of landfill hydrology in urban hydrological response unit context as well as evaluate the potential risks to environment

and human health related to landfill geomorphology and hydrological balance in temporal climate conditions. The

landfill hydrological cycle has similarities with urban hydrological cycle; however, there are additional components

related to landfill specification, e.g., irrigation or leachate recirculation as well as total produced leachate.

The main components of landfill gas are methane and carbon dioxide. Emissions of methane, a strong greenhouse gas, can be minimized by in situ oxidation in the bioactive cover layer. Typically, organic-rich porous materials such as compost are used for this process. In this study, the material for a biocover was obtained from the same landfill by landfill mining. The objective was to study the spatial distribution of gases and the efficiency of methane degradation in the biocover. The methane and carbon dioxide emissions were measured at 29 measuring points six times on the surface and once at a depth of 0.5 m. The highest values of both gases from the surface were recorded in July 2015: 1.0% for CO(2)and 2.1% for CH4. Deeper in the cover layer, higher values of methane concentration were recorded. The results showed that (a) methane from the waste deposit was entering the biocover, (b) the migration of methane to the atmosphere was low, (c) fluctuations in the composition of gases are seasonal, and (d) the trend in the concentration of CH(4)over time was an overall decrease. The described cover design reduces the CH(4)emissions in landfills using elements of circular economy-instead of wasting natural soils and synthetic liners for the construction of the final cover layer, functional waste-derived materials can be used.