Diarrhoea among Children Aged under Five Years and Risk Factors in Informal Settlements: A Cross-Sectional Study in Cape Town, South Africa.

Background: There is limited data on the association between diarrhoea among children aged under five years (U5D) and water use, sanitation, hygiene, and socio-economics factors in low-income communities. The study investigated U5D and the associated risk factors in the Zeekoe catchment in Cape Town, South Africa.

Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted in 707 households in six informal settlements (IS) two formal settlements (FS) (March-June 2017).

Adsorption of perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) from water using leaf biomass () in a fixed-bed column study.

Introduction: Adsorption of perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) onto modified activated carbons (AC-HPO) produced from leaf biomass of leaf litter in a fixed bed column experiment was investigated in this study.

Methods: The column bed was packed with the produced activated carbons in a uniform particle size of ˃ 64 μm. Experimental parameters including the initial concentration of the solution, column bed height, the mass of adsorbent and flow rate were optimized to establish the best adsorption efficiency parameters for the system.

Validation and determination of nine PFCS in surface water and sediment samples using UPLC-QTOF-MS.

In this study, an analytical method for the routine determination of nine perfluorinated compounds (PFCs), using ultra performance liquid chromatography coupled to a quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometer (UPLC-QTOF-MS), was developed, validated, and used for their assay in surface water and sediments. The method yielded good linearity with a correlation coefficient (R) ranging between 0.991 and 0.

Removal of PFOA and PFOS from aqueous solutions using activated carbon produced from Vitis vinifera leaf litter.

The removal of perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) from aqueous solutions using agro-waste biomass of Vitis vinifera (grape) leaf litter was studied. Activated carbons were produced from the biomass and chemical activation achieved by using phosphoric acid (HPO) and potassium hydroxide (KOH) for the modification of the carbons' surface morphology. Activated carbons were characterized using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy and Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) in order to understand removal mechanisms of the contaminants by activated carbons.