Characteristics of Metakaolin-Based Geopolymer with Cathode Ray Tube Glass.

Geopolymers can be treated as an environmentally friendly alternative for concrete and enables utilization of various wastes. This paper focuses on the possibility of application of discarded cathode ray tube (CRT) glass inside a metakaolin-based geopolymer in the form of an aggregate, providing an ecological method of recycling of this hazardous material. The main goal of this paper was to develop an optimal composition of a new geopolymer and to describe its behavior under varying curing conditions.

Health Risk Impacts of Exposure to Airborne Metals and Benzo(a)Pyrene during Episodes of High PM10 Concentrations in Poland.

Objective: To check whether health risk impacts of exposure to airborne metals and Benzo(a) Pyrene during episodes of high PM10 concentrations lead to an increased number of lung cancer cases in Poland.

Methods: In this work, we gathered data from 2002 to 2014 concerning the ambient concentrations of PM10 and PM10-bound carcinogenic Benzo(a)pyrene [B(a)P] and As, Cd, Pb, and Ni. With the use of the criterion of the exceedance in the daily PM10 mass concentration on at least 50% of all the analyzed stations, the PM10 maxima's were selected.

Stimulation of Heavy Metal Adsorption Process by Using a Strong Magnetic Field.

The adsorption process is one of the most important techniques of water and wastewater treatment technology. Therefore, there are many methods allowing to improve the effectiveness of these processes based mainly on the chemical modification of adsorbents. However, they are always associated with the necessity of introducing an additional wastes or sewage to the environment.

Zinc Removal from the Aqueous Solutions by the Chemically Modified Biosorbents.

Biosorbents are the natural origin adsorbents, which popularity in environmental engineering is steadily increasing due to their low price, ease of acquisition, and lack of the toxic properties. Presented research aimed to analyze the possibility of chemical modification of the straw, which is a characteristic waste in the Polish agriculture, to improve its biosorption properties with respect to removal of selected metals from aquatic solutions. Biosorbents used during the tests was a barley straw that was shredded to a size in the range of 0.

The Assessment of Toxic Metals in Plants Used in Cosmetics and Cosmetology.

Heavy metals polluting the natural environment are absorbed by plants. The use of herbs as components of cosmetics may pose a health risk for humans. The aim of the study was to determine the concentrations of Pb, Cd and Hg in selected species of herbs (horsetail , nettle , St.

Chromium, zinc and magnesium concentrations in the pubic hair of obese and overweight women.

The study addressed chromium, zinc and magnesium concentrations in the pubic hair of obese and overweight women. It was carried out on hair collected from 85 women at the age of 16-80 living in the Podkarpackie Voivodeship (southern Poland). The experimental and control groups consisted of 39 and 46 females, respectively.

An assessment of natural concentrations of selected metals in the bone tissues of the femur head.

The study was aimed at assessing the natural concentrations of copper, iron, potassium, lead and cadmium in the femur head using regression analysis. The material was collected during the operation of total hip arthroplasty from patients of southern and central Poland suffering from diagnosed coxarthrosis. In total, 197 samples were collected, including 68 samples of spongious bone, 59 samples of cortical bone and 70 samples of cartilage surface.

Lead content in the femoral heads of inhabitants of Silesia (Poland).

Lead content was evaluated in spongious and cortical bone as well as in cartilage surface of human femoral heads obtained during hip arthroplasty from 45 inhabitants (11 males and 34 females) of the industrial region of Upper Silesia. The average age of this group was 63.9+/-14.

Metal content in femoral head spongious bone of people living in regions of different degrees of environmental pollution in Southern and Middle Poland.

The content of calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, potassium, iron, zinc, copper, lead, cadmium, arsenic, and silver was evaluated in femoral head spongious bone of inhabitants of southern (Silesia, n = 13; Cracow, n = 13) and middle Poland (Lodz, n = 12). A total of 38 persons (29 females and 9 males) were included in the study. The average age in the Silesian group was 68 +/- 9.

Metal contamination of farming soils affected by industry.

The contents of nine elements (As, Cd, Cr, Cu, Hg, Ni, Pb, Sb and Zn) have been assayed in the farming soils of Suszec commune (southern Poland). This area is affected by the main industrial centre of Poland (the Upper Silesian Industrial Region), the Czech Republic (Trzyniec smelter) and local contamination sources (coal mine). The contamination of the soils was assessed on the basis of geoaccumulation index, enrichment factor, contamination factor and degree of contamination.

Comparison of methods for leaching heavy metals from composts.

This paper presents the determination of total iron, copper, zinc, chromium, nickel, lead, cadmium and mercury contents in the compost obtained from sorted municipal organic solid waste applying the following methods of sample mineralization: 40% hydrofluoric acid with preliminary incineration of a sample, a mixture of concentrated nitric(V) and chloric(VII) acids with preliminary incineration of organic matter and a mixture of nitric(V) and chloric(VII) acids without sample incineration. The speciation analysis of Tessier was used to estimate the bioavailability of the metals. Elution degrees of the mobile forms of the metals from the compost with 10% nitric(V) acid and 1 mol/dm(3) hydrochloric acid were compared.

Arsenic content in the femur head of the residents of southern and central Poland.

Arsenic content was assayed in the samples of the femur head of the people living in southern and central Poland (Kraków, n=13; Silesian region, n=13; Lódz, n=12). The average age being 68.7+/-8.

Application of principal component analysis for the estimation of source of heavy metal contamination in surface sediments from the Rybnik Reservoir.

The concentrations of metals, loss of ignition and nutrient (N, P) were determined in the bottom sediments of the Rybnik Reservoir (southern Poland). The mean concentrations of the metals in the bottom sediments were: Cd 25.8 microgram/g, Cu 451.